Up to 25 percent of the population will have a cardiac rhythm problem, or cardiac arrhythmia, at some point in life. These arrhythmia conditions can range from a minor nuisance, such as feeling skipped beats, to a life-threatening heart attack. Symptoms include fluttering sensations in the chest, shortness of breath, chest pain and black outs.

MUSC has long been recognized as a center for treating cardiac arrhythmias. About 25 percent of our cardiac electrophysiology patients come from out of state, and we also frequently treat international patients. MUSC physicians have been instrumental in developing innovative cardiac electrophysiology technologies to diagnose, treat and often cure heart rhythm problems, including cardiac arrhythmias.

One of the most exciting treatments for problems in the top chamber of heart, such as atrial fibrillation, is the catheter ablation procedure. MUSC’s J. Marcus Wharton, M.D., is one of the world’s leading authorities on this procedure and performs it more than anyone else in the southeast.

MUSC continues to be a leader in cardiac electrophysiology and studies of new technologies for defibrillators for the treatment of arrhythmias. These devices are used to treat cardiac arrhythmias in the bottom parts of the heart, which can be more immediately life threatening.

Another area of cardiac electrophysiology involves the use of pace makers to treat congestive heart failure. MUSC’s Michael R. Gold, M.D., participated in the first studies and implants of pace makers in humans.