Surgery for Atrial Fibrillation

Heart Fail Clin. 2016 Apr;12(2):235-43. doi: 10.1016/j.hfc.2015.08.019.

Abstract

Atrial fibrillation is the most common cardiac arrhythmia, and its treatment options include drug therapy or catheter-based or surgical interventions. The surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation has undergone multiple evolutions over the last several decades. The Cox-Maze procedure went on to become the gold standard for the surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation and is currently in its fourth iteration (Cox-Maze IV). This article reviews the indications and preoperative planning for performing a Cox-Maze IV procedure. This article also reviews the literature describing the surgical results for both approaches including comparisons of the Cox-Maze IV to the previous cut-and-sew method.

Keywords: Atrial fibrillation; Cox-Maze; Minimally invasive; Surgical ablation.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Ablation Techniques / adverse effects
  • Ablation Techniques / methods
  • Aftercare
  • Atrial Fibrillation / physiopathology
  • Atrial Fibrillation / surgery*
  • Catheter Ablation / adverse effects
  • Catheter Ablation / methods
  • Humans
  • Intraoperative Care / methods
  • Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures / methods
  • Recurrence
  • Treatment Outcome