Getting ready for your ablation
What to do in the weeks before, what happens on the day, and what is normal while you heal.
From Dr. Kenny Civello, cardiologist and electrophysiologist
A thin, flexible tube called a catheter goes through a vein at the top of your leg and up to your heart. Its tip treats small areas of tissue with heat, cold, or very short electric pulses. The tiny scars it leaves block the faulty signals.
No open surgery
Everything happens through a vein in your groin. You go home with a small bandage, not a large cut.
You will be asleep
You get anesthesia or deep sedation. Most people remember nothing of the procedure.
Home soon after
Many people go home the same day. Some stay one night.
Heat, cold, or pulses: which one will I get?
Radiofrequency ablation uses heat. Cryoablation uses cold. Pulsed field ablation uses very short electric pulses. All three create the same kind of small scar. We choose based on your rhythm and your heart, and we will tell you which one we plan to use.
Your checklist
Check things off as you go. Nothing you enter leaves this device.
In the weeks before
The night before
The morning of
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Why the blood thinner matters so much
Ablation works inside the upper chambers of the heart, where clots can form. Taking your blood thinner every day in the weeks before lowers the chance of a stroke during or after the procedure. Kim, our scheduler, will tell you when to stop it before your procedure. Do not stop it before then.
The day of your ablation
Check in and prep
A nurse places an IV, checks your medicines, and cleans the skin at your groin.
Anesthesia
You go to sleep in the procedure room. You should not feel the procedure.
Mapping
Catheters go up to your heart. A computer builds a 3D map of your heart and its electrical signals.
Treatment
We treat the areas that start the rhythm, then test to make sure the faulty signals are blocked.
Waking up
You lie flat for a few hours so the vein in your leg can seal. Nurses check your groin and your heart rhythm.
Going home
Someone else must drive you. Most people go home the same day or the next morning.
Healing at home
Most people feel close to normal within a week.
Your groin
Keep the site clean and dry. You can shower right away. No baths or swimming for one week.
Activity
Walk the same day. Do not lift more than 10 pounds for one week.
Driving
No driving for 24 hours after sedation.
Medicines
Take your blood thinner after the procedure as we tell you. Do not stop it on your own, even if your rhythm feels normal.
What is normal afterward
These are common and usually fade on their own. Your discharge papers list the signs that need a call. Keep them handy.
A bruise or small lump
At your groin. It may spread down the leg and change color over a week or two.
Chest discomfort
A mild ache, or pain with a deep breath, for a few days. The lining around the heart is irritated and healing.
Feeling tired
For several days, sometimes a week or two. Rest and build back up.
A sore throat
From the breathing tube used during anesthesia. It goes away in a day or two.
The treated areas take about three months to heal fully. Skipped beats or short spells of AFib are common during that time. We judge how well the ablation worked after the healing period, not before.
Common questions
Will the ablation cure my AFib?
Many people stay free of AFib for years. Some need a second procedure. Treating weight, alcohol, blood pressure, and sleep apnea makes success more likely. See the AFib risk guide.
Will I still need my rhythm medicine?
Sometimes for a few weeks or months after the ablation. We decide at your checkup whether you can stop it.
When can I stop my blood thinner?
Not on your own. That choice depends on your stroke risk, not on whether the ablation worked. We will talk about it at your checkups.
When is my first checkup?
We see you about 4 weeks after the procedure. We may ask you to wear a heart monitor before that visit.
Can my watch tell if the ablation worked?
It can help. Record an ECG when you feel symptoms and bring the recordings to your checkup. See the watch alert guide.
Other guides
Lowering your AFib riskMy watch says I have AFibLiving with a pacemaker or ICDLowering your blood pressureEating for your heartSleeping wellLiving with POTSThis page is general education for my patients. It does not replace advice from your own doctor or the instructions you get for your procedure.
Based on: Joglar JA, et al. 2023 ACC/AHA/ACCP/HRS Guideline for the Diagnosis and Management of Atrial Fibrillation. Circulation. 2024. Calkins H, et al. 2017 HRS/EHRA/ECAS/APHRS/SOLAECE Expert Consensus Statement on Catheter and Surgical Ablation of Atrial Fibrillation. Heart Rhythm. 2017.