Udupi: The pacemaker and arrhythmia clinic was set in motion at Kasturba Hospital, Manipal, said Dr Col M Dayananda Medical superintendent and COO Kasturba Hospital Manipal.

"Patients who suffer from palpitations, syncope, giddiness can avail the facilities available in the clinic, which has the expertise of Dr Mukund Prabhu, a full time Cardiac Electrophysiology consultant. The Cardiology Department at the hospital here which is among the top five centres in Karnataka in-terms of volume is further strengthened with the functioning of the Electrophysiology Unit,” Dr Dayanand added.

"Dr Mukund Prabhu, who has recently joined the department, completed his post doctoral fellowship in Electrophysiology and DM (Interventional Cardiology) from Sree Chithra Tirunal Institute of Medical Sciences and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram, which is a premium institute for cardiac sciences. He worked with Jayadeva Institute Bengaluru and Amrita Institute Kochi before joining Kasturba Hospital, Manipal.

"Cardiac electrophysiology (EP) is the specialized branch of cardiology that deals with disturbances in heart rhythm, diseases like syncope, palpitations, giddiness, and deals with heart failure as well as those at risk for sudden cardiac death," he added.

"The Electrophysiology Studies and the conventional radiofrequency ablation, which offers a cure for many diseases causing palpitation will now be performed at Cardiac Electrophysiology Unit at Kasturba Hospital Manipal. In the Radiofrequency Ablation, the abnormal circuit that is responsible for palpitation is removed in a controlled way by applying radiofrequency energy which is a form of electric current. This is done through the veins, without any surgical incision to cure palpitations and requires a hospital stay of only 2-3 days.

"Cardiac pacemakers are devices that artificially support the heart rate when it is low. ICD is a modern device that prevents sudden death by bringing a fast-abnormal heart beat to the normal. CRT is yet another modern device that improves the pumping of the heart when it is weak and is extremely useful in some patients with weak heart muscle function or heart failure. The Cardiac Electrophysiology unit performs the implantation of these devices and their optimal programming after implantation to get best results," he informed.