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Background The purpose of this study is to investigate if a laryngeal mask could improve respiratory condition during radiofrequency catheter ablation (RFCA). Methods Twenty-four consecutive patients who underwent RFCA for atrial fibrillation were divided into two groups (Facemask group; n = 10, Laryngeal mask group; n = 14). All patients were completely sedated under intravenous anesthesia and fitted with artificial respirators during the RFCA. The capnography waveforms and their differential coefficients were analyzed to evaluate the changes of end-tidal CO2 (ETCO2) values, respiratory intervals, expiratory durations, and inspiratory durations. Results During the RFCA, ETCO2 values of the laryngeal mask group were higher than those of the facemask group (36.0 vs. 29.2 mmHg, p = 0.005). The respiratory interval was significantly longer in the laryngeal mask group than those in the facemask group (4.28 s vs.5.25 s, p 2 was significantly higher when using a laryngeal mask than when using a facemask. The inspiratory-expiratory ratio of the laryngeal mask group was significantly larger than that of the facemask group (1.59 vs. 1.27, p 2 value is the most influential parameter on the fluoroscopic duration during the RFCA procedure (β = − 0.477, p = 0.029). Conclusions The use of a laryngeal mask could stabilize respiration during intravenous anesthesia, which could improve the efficiency of RFCA.