Respiratory Medicine
Volume 100, Issue 9 , Pages 1657-1659, September 2006

Right hemi-diaphragm paralysis following cardiac radiofrequency ablation

  • E.B. Swallow

      Affiliations

    • Respiratory Muscle Laboratory, Royal Brompton Hospital, Fulham Road, London SW3 6NP, UK
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author. Tel.: +442073518029; fax: +442073518939.
    • ,
  • M.J. Dayer

      Affiliations

    • Respiratory Muscle Laboratory, Royal Brompton Hospital, Fulham Road, London SW3 6NP, UK
    • ,
  • W.L. Oldfield

      Affiliations

    • Respiratory Muscle Laboratory, Royal Brompton Hospital, Fulham Road, London SW3 6NP, UK
    • ,
  • J. Moxham

      Affiliations

    • Respiratory Muscle Laboratory, King's College Hospital, London, UK
    • ,
  • M.I. Polkey

      Affiliations

    • Respiratory Muscle Laboratory, Royal Brompton Hospital, Fulham Road, London SW3 6NP, UK

Received 15 December 2005; accepted 31 December 2005. published online 21 February 2006.

Summary 

Diaphragm paralysis may occur after traumatic phrenic nerve injury. Here we report three patients in whom right hemi-diaphragmatic paralysis developed after cardiac radiofrequency ablation. We hypothesise that local focused thermal energy at the time of the ablation may have caused direct neuronal damage by axonal coagulation necrosis. The prognosis for this type of injury may be reasonably good; two of the three patients fully recovered diaphragm function by 1 year.

Keywords: Radiofrequency ablation, Hemi-diaphragm paralysis, Phrenic nerve testing

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PII: S0954-6111(06)00005-9

doi:10.1016/j.rmed.2005.12.012

Respiratory Medicine
Volume 100, Issue 9 , Pages 1657-1659, September 2006

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