Type of Surgery
Information

Last updated: 11/24/2009
The overall operative mortality for patients undergoing the Maze procedure is 3%. The mortality rate increases among patients over age 65.
Atrial fibrillation is not immediately life threatening, but it can lead to other heart rhythm problems....
Follow-up data from the Framingham Heart Study and the Anti-arrhythmia Versus Implantable Defibrillators Trial have shown that atrial fibrillation is a predictor of increased mortality.
According to a 2002 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, controlling a patient's heart rate is as important as controlling the patient's heart rhythm to prevent death and complications from cardiovascular causes. The study also concluded that anticoagulant therapy is important to reduce the risk of stroke and is appropriate therapy in patients who have recurring, persistent atrial fibrillation even after they received treatment.
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Atrial fibrillation is disease caused when electrical tissues in the atrium of the heart fire inappropriately and cause ineffective and chaotic heart contraction. This narrated animation shows one surgical treatment for atrial fibrillation called the mini-maze procedure. The mini-maze procedure lesions part of the heart to break the "circuit" of improper electrical firing in the heart.
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Definition
The Maze procedure, also known as the Cox-Maze procedure, is a surgical treatment for chronic atrial fibrillation. The procedure restores the heart's normal rhythm by surgically interrupting the conduction of abnormal impulses.
Purpose
When the heart beats too fast, blood no longer circulates effectively in the body. The Maze procedure is used to stop this abnormal beating so that the heart can begin its normal rhythm and pump more efficiently. The procedure is also intended to control heart rate and prevent blood clots and strokes.
From http://www.answers.com/topic/maze-procedure-for-atrial-fibrillation
Other Information
In 2006, 2,192 heart transplantations were performed in the United States. There are 257 transplant hospitals in the United States, 135 of which perform heart transplantations. (http://www.unos.org/)
From: Unos.org
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