Liu says his back feels better since going to the ZeroGravity system. In procedures that go on for hours, such as atrial fibrillation ablations, the lead apron can take a toll on the doctor's back shoulder. In addition, this system offers front and side protection as well as protection over the whole head. The system features a lead apron that is 1 millimeter thick, twice the thickness of the usual standard lead aprons. It supports and allows a second component, the radiation protection suit, to move around. The new system features a base unit that resembles a crane. Looking a bit like something out of a science-fiction movie, the ZeroGravity Radiation Protection System, created by CFI Medical Solutions in Fenton Mich., bears the weight of the protection system so it does not bear down on the physician as lead aprons do. Borgess recently obtained a special suit to replace the heavy lead aprons used for radiation protection necessitated by the use of fluoroscopy, or x-rays, to guide the insertion of catheters. The newest aspect of the procedure is an addition that may ultimately be found to be safer for Liu and other doctors who use radiation in the operating room. The ablation often eliminates the need for open heart surgery and even long-term medication therapies. We can be confident we do have the ability to fix it." "It's very rare in medicine that we have a real cure," Liu says. The patient is sedated throughout the minimally invasive procedure. The treatment also can be used for both rapid heat and slow heart arrhythmias. Most ablations are performed on the upper chambers of the heart, but they also can be performed on arrhythmias that originate in the heart's lower chambers. The disturbance of electrical activity ends and the heart returns to a regular rhythm. Scar tissue forms as the area of ablation heals. Once the mapping process is finished, radiofrequency energy is delivered through the catheter to destroy - or ablate - a very small amount of tissue causing abnormal electrical signals. The catheters are directed to the heart muscle.Įlectrodes on the tip of the catheters gather data that allows the physician to pinpoint or "map" the exact location of the electrical problem. Simple ablations have been performed locally for some time, but complex ablations like those Liu does typically are performed only at major academic institutions.ĭuring an ablation one or more flexible, thin tubes, or catheters, are guided via x-ray into the blood vessels, usually through the groin. It's a treatment that residents of Southwest Michigan might expect to travel to the Mayo or Cleveland clinics to obtain were it not for doctor Liu's practicing in the area. This year Liu became the first local doctor to offer an advanced radiofrequency catheter abalation procedure for cardiac rhythm disorders in Kalamazoo. They work closely with other doctors who treat patients with heart disease. Cardiologists who have additional education and training in the diagnosis and treatment of abnormal heart rhythms are called electrophysiologists. That is to say, he specializes in the intricate electrical problems that cause abnormal heat beats.Įlectrophysiology is one of the fastest growing of all cardiovascular specialties. Liu, one of 16 doctors at Borgess Heart Center for Excellence, practices electrophysiology. When all is well the heart has a regular thump-thump, thump-thump, thump-thump rhythm.Īn electrical problem in the heart, or "short circuit," can cause that rhythm to go off beat.
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