Improving Clinical Outcomes in End-Stage Heart Failure and Atrial Fibrillation with Catheter Ablation
|
Reviewed by Dat Tien Nguyen, B.A, ScM.
Translated by Nhi Phuong Quynh Le, B.A |
Posted on November 3rd, 2023
|
Previous myocardial infarction could have caused cell death that can interfere with the normal circulation of blood. This cardiac dysfunction is referred to as heart failure and the interruption of normal electrical conduction can result in atrial fibrillation. Thus, a study was conducted to examine whether the removal of dead tissue with catheter ablation can help improve the clinical outcome of patients with end-stage heart failure and atrial fibrillation.
The study included 194 patients whose average age was approximately 63 years old. These patients have been living with atrial fibrillation for around 4 years, and 56% of atrial fibrillation can be categorized as persistent. These patients had also been diagnosed with heart failure; around one-third of these cases are ischemic. Half of these patients were randomly assigned to undergo catheter ablation with the aim to restore sinus rhythm by isolating the electrical network of all pulmonary veins. Antiarrhythmic medication was discontinued in all of these patients; in contrast, standard treatment, as recommended by the American Heart Association, was continued for patients in the control group. After a median follow-up period of 18 months, the researchers found that the removal of dead myocardial tissue by catheter ablation had reduced the risk of death by 76%. To be specific, the mortality rate of patients who had received catheter ablation was 8%, which was significantly lower than the 30% in the control group.
The study included 194 patients whose average age was approximately 63 years old. These patients have been living with atrial fibrillation for around 4 years, and 56% of atrial fibrillation can be categorized as persistent. These patients had also been diagnosed with heart failure; around one-third of these cases are ischemic. Half of these patients were randomly assigned to undergo catheter ablation with the aim to restore sinus rhythm by isolating the electrical network of all pulmonary veins. Antiarrhythmic medication was discontinued in all of these patients; in contrast, standard treatment, as recommended by the American Heart Association, was continued for patients in the control group. After a median follow-up period of 18 months, the researchers found that the removal of dead myocardial tissue by catheter ablation had reduced the risk of death by 76%. To be specific, the mortality rate of patients who had received catheter ablation was 8%, which was significantly lower than the 30% in the control group.