Surgery for supraventricular arrhythmias and its future

From February 1981 to December 1991, 152 patients had surgery for supraventricular arrhythmias; 118 had division of an accessory atrioventricular connection (AAVC) for Wolff Parkinson-White syndrome. At the first operation, 128 of 133 pathways were divided, and 112 patients were asymptomatic. Five patients had a second, successful procedure. No patients died. A procedure for partial isolation of the atrioventricular (AV) node was performed in 15 patients; 14 were cured. There were 2 late deaths. Four patients had division of an AAVC and AV node re-entry; all were cured. In our early experience, 10 patients had ablation of the atrioventricular node, and all the procedures were successful.