Impact of an Organized Treatment Pathway on Management of Atrial Fibrillation: The ER2EP Study.

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common arrhythmia reported worldwide. There is significant heterogeneity in AF care pathways for a patient seen in the emergency room, impacting access to guideline-driven therapies. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to compare the difference in AF outcomes between those treated with an organized treatment pathway vs routine-care approach. Methods: The emergency room to electrophysiology service study (ER2EP) is a multicenter, prospective observational registry (NCT04476524) enrolling patients with AF from sites where a pathway for management of AF was put in place compared to sites where a pathway was not in place within the same health system and the same physicians providing services at all sites. Multivariable regression modeling was performed to identify predictors of clinical outcomes. Beta coefficient or odds ratio was reported as appropriate. Results: A total of 500 patients (ER2EP group, n = 250; control group, n = 250) were included in the study. The mean age was 73.4 ± 12.9 years, and 52.2% were males. There was a statistically significant difference in primary endpoint [time to ablation (56 ± 50.9 days vs 183.3 ± 109.5 days; P < 0.001), time to anticoagulation initiation (2.1 ± 1.6 days vs 19.7 ± 35 days, P < 0.001), antiarrhythmic drug initiation (4.8 ± 7.1 days vs 24.7 ± 44.4 days, P < 0.001) compared to the control group, respectively. As such, this resulted in reduced length of stay in the ER2EP group compared to the control group (2.4 ± 1.4 days vs 3.23 ± 2.5 days, P = 0.002). Conclusions: This study provides evidence that having an organized pathway from the emergency department for AF patients involving electrophysiology services can improve early access to definitive therapies and clinical outcomes.

Sinus Node Sparing Hybrid Thoracoscopic Ablation Outcomes in Patients with Inappropriate Sinus Tachycardia (SUSRUTA-IST) Registry.

BACKGROUND: Medical treatment of inappropriate sinus tachycardia (IST) remains suboptimal. Radiofrequency sinus node (RF-SN) ablation has poor success and higher complication rates. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to compare clinical outcomes of the novel SN sparing hybrid ablation technique with those of RF-SN modification for IST management. METHODS: This is a multicenter prospective registry comparing the SN sparing hybrid ablation strategy with RF-SN modification. The hybrid procedure was performed using an RF bipolar clamp, isolating superior vena cava/inferior vena cava with the creation of a lateral line across the crista terminalis while sparing the SN region (identified by endocardial 3-dimensional mapping). RF-SN modification was performed by endocardial and/or epicardial mapping and ablation at the site of earliest atrial activation. RESULTS: Of the 100 patients (hybrid ablation group, n = 50; RF-SN group, n = 50), 82% were women, and the mean age was 22.8 years. Normal sinus rhythm and rate were restored in all patients in the hybrid group (vs 84% in the RF-SN group; P = .006). Hybrid ablation was associated with significantly better improvement in mean daily heart rate and peak 6-minute walk heart rate compared with RF-SN ablation. The RF-SN group had a significantly higher rate of redo procedures (100% vs 8%; P < .001), phrenic nerve injury (14% vs 0%; P = .012), lower acute pericarditis (48% vs 92%; P < .0001), permanent pacemaker implantation (50% vs 4%; P < .0001) than did the hybrid ablation group. CONCLUSION: The novel sinus node sparing hybrid ablation procedure appears to be more efficacious and safer in patients with symptomatic drug-resistant IST with long-term durability than RF-SN ablation.

Comprehensive coronary risk determination in primary prevention: an imaging and clinical based definition combining computed tomographic coronary artery calcium score and national cholesterol education program risk score.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of mortality and a major cause of morbidity. Coronary heart disease (CHD) accounts for nearly half of all CVD deaths. Currently estimation of risk in primary prevention is based on the Framingham risk equations, which inputs traditional risk factors and is helpful in predicting the development of CHD in asymptomatic individuals. However many individuals suffer events in the absence of established risk factors for atherosclerosis and broad based population risk estimations may have little precision when applied to a given individual. To meet the challenge of CHD risk assessment, several tools have been developed to identify atherosclerotic disease in its preclinical stages. This paper aims to incorporate information from coronary artery calcification (CAC) scoring from a computed tomographic "heartscan" (using Electron Beam Tomography (EBT) as the validated prototype) along with current Framingham risk profiling in order to refine risk on an absolute scale by combining imaging and clinical data to affect a more comprehensive calculation of absolute risk in a given individual. For CAC scores above the 75th percentile but <90th percentile, 10 years is added to chronological age, and for CAC scores above the 90th percentile, 20 years is added to current chronological age. Among those in whom a positive CAC score is the norm such as older individuals (men> or =55 years, women> or =65 years) a CAC = 0 will result in an age point score corresponding to the age-group whose median CAC score is zero i.e., 40-44 years for men and 55-59 years for women. The utilization of CAC scores allows the inclusion of sub-clinical disease definition into the context of modifiable risk factors as well as identifies high-risk individuals requiring aggressive treatment.

Radiation exposure during catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to determine the radiation exposure during catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation (AF) using the pulmonary vein (PV) approach. METHODS AND RESULTS: The study included 15 patients with AF and 5 patients each with atrial flutter and atrioventricular nodal reentrant tachycardia (AVNRT) who underwent fluoroscopically guided procedures on a biplane x-ray system operated at a low-frame pulsed fluoroscopy (7.5 frames per second). Radiation exposure was measured directly with 50 to 60 thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLDs). Peak skin doses (PSDs), effective radiation doses, and risk of fatal malignancies were all computed. Mean fluoroscopy durations for AF procedures were 67.8+/-21 minutes in the right anterior oblique (RAO) and 61.9+/-16.6 minutes in the left anterior oblique (LAO) projection, significantly different from that required for atrial flutter and AVNRT. The mean PSDs measured with the TLDs were 1.0+/-0.5 Gy in the RAO and 1.5+/-0.4 Gy in the LAO projection. The lifetime risk of excess fatal malignancies normalized to 60 minutes of fluoroscopy was 0.07% for women and 0.1% for men. CONCLUSIONS: The relatively small amounts of the patient's radiation exposure in this study, despite the prolonged fluoroscopy durations, can be attributed to the use of very-low-frame pulsed fluoroscopy, the avoidance of magnification, and optimal adjustments of the fluoroscopy exposure rates. The resulting lifetime risk of fatal malignancy is within the range previously reported for standard supraventricular arrhythmias.

Relation of family history of premature coronary heart disease and metabolic risk factors to risk of coronary arterial calcium in asymptomatic subjects.

We studied 6,141 consecutive, asymptomatic, nondiabetic patients who underwent electron beam tomography and explored the interaction between metabolic risk factors (RFs) and premature family history (FH) of coronary heart disease (CHD) in predicting the presence and severity of coronary arterial calcium (CAC). In the presence of >2 metabolic RFs, patients with a positive FH of premature CHD had a significantly higher prevalence of any CAC, CAC >/=100, and CAC >/=75th age-gender percentile than those without a FH of CHD. Our study demonstrated that a familial propensity to subclinical atherosclerosis interacts with the presence of >/=2 metabolic RFs, magnifying the risks for those exposed to both.