心房颤动呈上升趋势. 但如果你或你爱的人在 估计2.7 to 6.100万人 in the United States with the condition, a groundbreaking treatment is now available.
新方法, 脉冲场烧蚀, has been shown to treat some forms of atrial fibrillation with good effect. It has faster procedure times than conventional techniques and carries less risk to the heart’s adjacent structures, 使一般安全的程序变得更安全.
“It's exciting to be able to provide this approach for our patients," says 医学博士Rajbir Sangha; who is on the team now offering PFA at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center’s 心脏血管中心. “It is one of many treatment options now available to help us treat what is becoming an increasingly common condition."
“这项技术已经研究了十年, 但直到最近才在美国上市.S. We are fortunate to be among the first hospitals across the country to have PFA as an option to offer to our patients,” Kevin Kwaku，医学博士， Director of Cardiac Electrophysiology at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center's 心脏血管中心.
什么是AFib
The introduction of Pulsed Field 消融 for the treatment of atrial fibrillation, 也被称为AFib, 这是一个关键时刻.
Atrial fibrillation is now the most common type of abnormal heart rhythm. 研究人员估计，.S. 病例将达到 12.到2030年达到100万.
“一些 patients describe that it can feel like a fish flopping or a butterfly flapping its wings in your heart,桑格说。. 但并非总是如此. 一些times people don’t feel atrial fibrillation happening at all, or have more subtle symptoms such as fatigue or 呼吸急促（气促）.”
The number of adults developing AFib increases with older age, but it can appear at any age. 最近 研究 even show a growing number of elite athletes in their twenties with the condition.
一些 因素 会让你更容易出现这种情况吗. 这些风险因素包括:
- 高血压
- 潜在心脏病
- 多余的重量
- 喝酒
- 睡眠呼吸暂停
- 家族病史
- 其他慢性疾病，如甲状腺机能亢进, 糖尿病, 哮喘, 以及其他慢性疾病
“这样才有可能保持正常的节奏, it is critical for patients to work on managing their modifiable risk 因素,Kwaku强调说.
当心脏发生心房颤动时会发生什么
正常情况下, a heart’s beat is initiated by pacemaker cells located in the sinus node of the right atrium, 或者右上心室. 每次这些细胞都被激活, the sinus node produces an electrical signal that causes both atria (upper chambers) to contract. The signal then flows through the atrioventricular node into the ventricles (lower chambers) to make them contract.
不像心脏病发作, which stems from a blockage impeding blood flow in a coronary artery, 心房纤颤是一个电问题. 当心脏开始心房颤动, the electrical signals in the heart’s upper chambers become chaotic, 导致下议院迅速收缩的, ,总是, 不定期. It’s both the rapidity and irregularity of the heart rate that can lead to significant symptoms, 影响生活质量.
AFib通常被归为三类之一. In paroxysmal atrial fibrillation, episodes start and stop on their own. 病人 who experience it may be younger and they often have noticeable symptoms like dizziness, 胸部疼痛, 呼吸急促（气促）, 和疲劳.
持续性心房颤动, the episode is continuous and the heart must be shocked back into normal rhythm (a procedure called cardioversion).
随着时间的推移, permanent atrial fibrillation can develop and the heart cannot be brought back to normal rhythm.
不是每个人都需要治疗AFib
治疗并不总是必要的.
对一些人来说，心脏失火可能相对无关紧要, especially when the fibrillation lasts for short periods and is able to return to a regular heartbeat on its own.
然而, atrial fibrillation can lead to an increased risk of blood clots that can block blood flow to the brain and lead to a stroke.
疾病控制和预防中心(CDC) points to research that shows that atrial fibrillation causes one in seven strokes in the United States. 因为这种风险, anticoagulants or blood thinners are an important part of therapy for many patients with AFib.
有哪些治疗方法??
病人 decide with their doctors whether and how to treat their AFib based on their diagnosis, 症状负担, 还有其他因素.
Possible treatments include anti-arrhythmic medications; non-invasive but temporary procedures like cardioversion; and minimally invasive catheter ablation procedures, 从而降低心脏发生心房颤动的可能性.
More rarely, more invasive approaches such as a pacemaker or other forms of surgery may be indicated.
消融
研究显示 大约70%到80%的病例都是这样, a single ablation procedure helps significantly reduce atrial fibrillation and its symptoms.
Thermal ablation for AFib involves inserting a flexible catheter into a blood vessel and feeding it into the heart, where hot or cold temperatures typically target the area around the pulmonary veins entering the left atrium.
“Technology has evolved rapidly over the last few years and now PFA offers improved safety when compared to thermal ablation,桑格说。.
PFA涉及电穿孔, 哪个是快递快, 高压脉冲电场作用于心脏组织. “把它想象成静电的放电—它能在不产生太多热量的情况下提供冲击力，”郭库说. This results in a lower risk of damage to surrounding non-cardiac structures.
Whether the treatment is right for you or your loved one will be determined by your doctor after a clear diagnosis of AFib is made. 这一诊断可能是在心电图检查之后做出的, 或者动态监测器, 对你的症状和危险因素进行深入评估.
如果你不需要治疗
每个人都可以采取措施保护自己的心脏. 经常建议的生活方式改变包括:
- 有规律的体育活动
- A heart-healthy diet low in salt, saturated fats, trans fats and cholesterol
- 控制高血压
- 避免过量饮酒
- 不吸烟
- 控制胆固醇
- 保持健康的体重
- 诊断和治疗睡眠呼吸暂停
那么，如果你被诊断出患有心房纤颤，你应该怎么做呢?
The cardiology subspecialty that manages heart rhythm disorders is called electrophysiology. 如果你被诊断患有心房纤颤并且有症状, ask to see a cardiac electrophysiologist to learn what options may be right for you.