Conemaugh Memorial’s experienced electrophysiology team offers several treatment options to those who have been diagnosed with heart rhythm disorders. Procedures are performed in our new Electrophysiology Laboratory, the only dedicated EP lab in the Cambria/Somerset region. Treatments can include:

• Cardiac Ablation
  During this non-surgical procedure, a thin flexible catheter, called a therapeutic catheter, is inserted into a vessel in the groin and threaded up into the heart. Heat or a cooling agent is sent through the catheter to extinguish the electrical triggers and circuits which cause arrhythmias.
• Pacemaker Insertion
  Pacemakers monitor and regulate the rhythm of the heart and transmit electrical impulses to stimulate the heart if it is beating too slowly. Pacemakers are often used to treat bradycardias.
• Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillators (ICDs)
  An ICD continuously monitors the heart rhythm and automatically functions as a pacemaker for heart rates that are too slow. In addition, they deliver life-saving shocks if a dangerously fast heart rhythm is detected. An ICD is 99% effective in stopping life-threatening arrhythmias and is the most successful therapy to treat ventricular fibrillation, the major cause of sudden cardiac death.
• Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy (Biventricular Pacing)
  This therapy is used for patients with heart failure. The inserted device can be a defibrillator or a pacer. It paces both the left and right ventricles (lower chambers) of the heart simultaneously. This resynchronizes muscle contractions and improves the efficiency of the weakened heart.