Electrophysiologic studies are invasive procedures performed in a hospital to identify the origin of serious arrhythmias and responses to various treatments. They involve cardiac catheterization, in which catheters tipped with electrodes are passed from a vein in the arm or leg through the blood vessels into the heart. The electrodes record impulses in the heart, highlighting where the arrhythmia starts. During the procedure, physicians can test the effects of various drugs by provoking an arrhythmia through the electrodes and trying different drugs. The procedure takes one to three hours, during which the patient is awake but mildly sedated.
Local anesthetic is injected at the catheter insertion sites.
Treatment Many arrhythmias do not require any treatment. For serious arrhythmias, treating the underlying heart disease sometimes controls the arrhythmia. Supraventricular arrhythmias often can be treated with drug therapy. Ventricular arrhythmias are more complex to treat. Drug therapy can manage many arrhythmias, but finding the right drug and dose requires care and can take some time.