The present invention is directed to compositions, methods and systems for identifying, in real time, the position and orientation of the esophagus prior to and during atrial fibrillation ablation procedures, so as to avoid or reduce the incidence of atrioesophageal fistula (AEF). The compositions, methods and systems of the present invention include the identification and visualization of the esophagus, the rapid and accurate integration of the visualized esophagus into an anatomical map together with the posterior wall of the left atrium, in each case presented as a 3-D map, so as to facilitate the accurate identification of those areas of the esophagus that lie in contact with or in near proximity to those areas of the posterior wall of the left atrium that the operator intends to ablate.
