Invasive Management of Atrial Fibrillation and the Elderly

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common arrhythmia encountered by caregivers for the elderly. A plethora of new, mostly invasive techniques have evolved to treat patients who remain symptomatic from this arrhythmia despite attempts at pharmacological therapy. The most widely-used of these new techniques is radiofrequency ablation, but in select patients, special types of pacemaker, cryoablation, and surgical maze therapy may be of benefit.