Do subclavian vein pacing and venous pressure waveform measurement effectively monitor phrenic nerve function during cryoballoon ablation of atrial fibrillation?
The study explores novel techniques for phrenic nerve monitoring during cryoablation of atrial fibrillation, addressing the lack of established optimal methods.
The phrenic nerves may be damaged during catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation. Phrenic nerve function is routinely monitored during ablation by stimulating the right phrenic nerve from a site in the superior vena cava (SVC) and manually assessing the strength of diaphragmatic contraction. However the optimal stimulation site, method of assessing diaphragmatic contraction, and techniques for monitoring the left phrenic nerve have not been established. We assessed novel techniques to monitor phrenic nerve function during cryoablation procedures.
Ghosh et al. (Mon,) studied this question.