Economics and laboratory efficiency of atrial fibrillation ablation.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Atrial fibrillation is a growing public health problem and is associated with an increased risk of comorbidities with enormous socioeconomic implications. This review article focuses on fiscal burden of atrial fibrillation on the healthcare system and economic value of atrial fibrillation ablations brought to the patient and the payers by improvement in outcomes and reduction in treatment costs. RECENT FINDINGS: This article summarizes the recently published studies evaluating the economic impact of atrial fibrillation treatment. Catheter ablation have shown to be the most successful strategy for treatment of defibrillation. However, repeat ablation is associated with higher costs, over and above any subsequent procedural costs, compared with a single ablation procedure for atrial fibrillation. Cryoballoon ablation has been shown to have fewer repeat ablations than radiofrequency ablations, which resulted in overall cost reduction. Improvement in laboratory efficiency, better utilization of laboratory resources and same-day discharge strategy can lead to further healthcare savings and increase in value to all stakeholders. SUMMARY: The value of healthcare delivery for patient with atrial fibrillation can be improved by advancement in technology that demonstrates cost reduction to the health system and outcomes improvements. Implementation of tactics that decrease cost and improve outcomes can alleviate some of the financial strain on healthcare systems, which is of extreme importance in the current climate.

Same-day discharge after cryoballoon ablation of atrial fibrillation: A multicenter experience.

BACKGROUND: It is common practice to observe patients during an overnight stay (ONS) following a catheter ablation procedure for the treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF). OBJECTIVES: To investigate the safety and economic impact of a same-day discharge (SDD) protocol after cryoballoon ablation for treatment of AF in high-volume, geographically diverse US hospitals. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed 2374 consecutive patients (1119 SDD and 1180 ONS) who underwent cryoballoon ablation for AF at three US centers. Baseline characteristics, acute procedure-related complications, and longer-term evaluations of safety were recorded during routine clinical follow-up. The mean cost of an ONS was used in a one-way sensitivity analysis to evaluate yearly cost savings as a function of the percentage of SDD cases per year. RESULTS: The SDD and ONS cohorts were predominately male (69% vs. 67%; p = .3), but SDD patients were younger (64 ± 11 vs. 66 ± 10; p < .0001) with lower body mass index (30 ± 6 vs. 31 ± 61; p < .0001) and CHA2 DS2 -VASc scores (1.4 ± 1.0 vs. 2.2 ± 1.4; p < .0002). There was no difference between SDD and ONS in the 30-day total complication rate (n = 15 [1.26%] versus n = 24 [2.03%]; p = .136, respectively). The most common complication was hematoma in both the SDD (n = 8; 0.67%) and ONS (n = 11; 0.93%) cohorts. Sensitivity analysis demonstrated that when 50% of every 100 patients treated were discharged the same day, hospital cost savings ranged from $45 825 to $83 813 per year across US hospitals. CONCLUSIONS: SDD following cryoballoon ablation for AF appears to be safe and is associated with cost savings across different US hospitals.

Recurrent Transient Ischemic Attacks in a Patient with Multiple Pacemaker Leads.

Venous complications-specifically, stenosis and thrombosis-are both well-known complications of transvenous implantation of pacemakers and defibrillators. Although they are a well-recognized phenomenon, these complications are rarely of clinical significance. One of the most concerning complications is the development of superior vena cava (SVC) syndrome. Studies have found that the incidence of SVC syndrome varies from 1 in 3,100 to 1 in 650 patients. The azygos-hemiazygos venous system is the most commonly observed collateral. We report a case of a 71-year-old female patient who presented with stroke-like symptoms during the injection of agitated saline bubbles while performing an echo and was found to have an unusual venous collateral circulation formed as a result of brachiocephalic and SVC obstruction from multiple pacemaker leads. Our patient's clinical presentation was extremely unique, and we did not find any cases during our literature search reporting a similar presentation. Multiple collaterals formed between the brachiocephalic and subclavian veins, and bilateral pulmonary veins in our patient allowed the injected air bubbles from the venous system to reach the left side of the heart and eventually the cerebrovascular system, resulting in these transient ischemic attacks. These attacks eventually resolved as the air bubbles were dissolved and washed away by the continuous blood flow. It is advisable to monitor the patient for possible venous stenosis and SVC syndrome after any device insertion during regular device follow-up appointments.

Treatment of hypertension in metabolic syndrome: implications of recent clinical trials.

Metabolic syndrome represents a constellation of hypertension, abdominal obesity, impaired fasting glucose, and dyslipidemia, and it has been shown to be a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. The components of metabolic syndrome are rapidly emerging as epidemics of the twenty-first century, and reduction of these underlying causes, such as obesity, physical inactivity, and atherogenic diet, is first-line therapy. Treatment of hypertension and other cardiometabolic risk factors of the syndrome is also required. Evidence demonstrates a relationship between hypertension, type 2 diabetes mellitus, and several vascular and metabolic abnormalities that are components of metabolic syndrome. Hypertension associated with metabolic syndrome has pathophysiologic characteristics that provide clinical challenges as well as opportunities for successful therapeutic interventions. This article reviews the treatment of hypertension as a metabolic and vascular disease and also opens a new paradigm for the treatment of metabolic syndrome, which affects nearly one quarter of the world's population.

Atrial flutter with spontaneous 1:1 atrioventricular conduction in adults: an uncommon but frequently missed cause for syncope/presyncope.

AIMS: To compare patients with atrial flutter (AFl) and 1:1 atrioventricular conduction (AVC) with patients with AFl and higher AVC. METHODS: The characteristics of 19 patients with AFl and 1:1 AVC (group A) were compared with those of 116 consecutive patients with AFl and 2:1 AVC or higher degree AV block (group B). RESULTS: Age, gender, and left ventricular function were similar in the two groups. In group A versus group B, more patients had no structural heart disease (42% vs 17%, P < 0.05) and syncope/presyncope (90% vs 12%, P < 0.05). The AFl cycle length (CL) in group A was longer than in group B (265 +/- 24 ms vs 241 +/- 26 ms, P < 0.01). The transition from AFl with 1:1 to 2:1 AVC or vice versa was associated with small but definite changes in AFl CL, which showed larger variations in response to sympathetic stimulation. In group A patients who were studied off drugs, the atrial-His interval was not different from group B, but maximal atrial pacing rate with 1:1 AVC was faster. In group A, five patients were misdiagnosed as ventricular tachyarrhythmias, and three with a defibrillator received inappropriate shocks. Four patients had ablation of AVC and six had ablation of AFl circuit. CONCLUSIONS: The main difference between groups A and B may be an inherent capacity of the AV node for faster conduction, especially in response to increased sympathetic tone. The latter affects not only AVC but also the AFl CL. One should be aware of the different presentations of AFl with 1:1 AVC to avoid misdiagnosis/mismanagement and to consider the diagnosis in patients with narrow or wide QRS tachycardia and rates above 220/min.

Left Ventricular Noncompaction: A Rare Case of Nonischemic Cardiomyopathy.

Isolated left ventricular noncompaction (LVNC) is a rare form of cardiomyopathy that is characterized by deep intertrabecular recesses and abnormal trabeculations that can be observed on transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE) or cardiac MRI (CMR) studies. Our case describes a 41-year-old male who presented with exertional chest pain and was discovered to have significantly reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) which was nonischemic in etiology as confirmed by cardiac catheterization. Subsequent evaluation with CMR imaging revealed noncompaction of the left ventricle. The patient received defibrillation and lifelong anticoagulation given his elevated risk of sudden cardiac death (SCD). This case highlights the importance of considering unconventional etiologies of cardiomyopathy when investigating new-onset heart failure as well as the necessity of life-saving measures such as anticoagulation and defibrillator implantation in view of arrhythmogenic structural heart diseases.

Pooled Analysis of the Efficacy and Safety of Video Capsule Endoscopy in Patients with Implantable Cardiac Devices.

Background: To date, video capsule endoscopy (VCE) is still contraindicated by the FDA and the main manufacturers of Cardiac Implantable Electronic Devices (CIED) in patients with CIED, given a theoretical electromagnetic interference and possible device malfunction. Objectives: The objective of this study was to assess the safety profile and efficacy of VCE in patients with implantable cardiac devices through analyzing the risk of mutual interference. Methods: A systematic review of PubMed, Web of Science, and Embase databases was conducted. Peer-reviewed original articles, published in the English language and containing "capsule endoscopy" AND "pacemaker", "defibrillator" OR "left ventricular assist device" as keywords, were selected. Studies performed in vitro, isolated case reports, and abstracts/posters were excluded. Results: A total of 735 VCE procedures were performed in patients with cardiac devices in various clinical settings. Cardiac events were not seen in any case. Interference on capsule images transmission was noted in 5 cases (left ventricular assist device (LVAD)) where few images were lost when the capsule was closest to the device. Finally, interference between capsule and telemetry leads was noted in 6 cases (4 Permanent Pacemakers (PPM), 2 Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator (ICD)) leading to image artifacts. Discussion: Adverse cardiac events were not seen in any study. Loss of images occurred when the VCE was in proximity to the device (only with LVAD) or after telemetry leads installation without affecting the completion rate and diagnostic yield of VCE. Conclusion: VCE is safe and remains efficient in patients with cardiac devices. If cardiac monitoring is required, wired systems are preferable.

Admission hyperglycemia and length of hospital stay in patients with diabetes and heart failure: a prospective cohort study.

The authors assessed the relationship between glycemia and length of hospital stay (LOS) in a prospective cohort study of patients with diabetes mellitus and heart failure (HF). Of 212 patients with acute HF exacerbation, 119 (56%) also had diabetes. The mean age of the cohort was 63+/-0.87 years, and the mean body mass index was 29.3 kg/m2. Diabetic patients had significantly longer LOS compared with the nondiabetics (5.0+/-0.29 vs 3.4+/-0.19; P<.001). In patients with diabetes, the mean glycated hemoglobin A1c was 8.3%, admission blood glucose (BG) was 169+/-7.7 mg/dL, and average BG was 196+/-8.1 mg/dL. After adjusting for age, sex, weight, hypertension, renal function, and anemia, LOS was significantly correlated with admission BG (r=0.31; P<.001) and average BG (r=0.34; P=.001). In patients with acute HF exacerbation, diabetes significantly prolonged LOS. Hyperglycemia correlated with LOS.

Use of MPH hemostatic powder for electrophysiology device implantation reduces postoperative rates of pocket hematoma and infection.

BACKGROUND: Surgical site bleeding and infection are potential complications after electrophysiology (EP) device implantation procedures. To date, there is a wide variety of tools for management of intraoperative bleeding but it still remains unclear what methods are preferred. OBJECTIVE: The aim of our study is to compare the rate of complications in patients who underwent cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED) implantation utilizing MPH hemostatic powder to the rate of complications in those patients who underwent standard procedure protocol without MPH hemostatic powder. METHODS: In our study, a new plant-derived microporous polysaccharide hemostatic powder (Arista) was used. A total of 283 consecutive patients were retrospectively studied to assess the rate of complications in patients who underwent CIED implantation with MPH hemostatic powder (n = 77, MPH hemostatic powder) and without (n = 206, no MPH hemostatic powder). Patients were followed for 12 months. RESULTS: The MPH hemostatic powder group of patients had a lower complication rate when compared to no MPH hemostatic powder, 0.3% vs. 1.7% (p < .05), respectively. The rate of device implantation site MPH hematoma in the MPH hemostatic powder group was 0.4%, versus 0.9% in the other group. There were no postoperative infections in the MPH hemostatic powder group versus 3.2% infections in the other group. The main predictor of increased risk of post-procedural complication was the usage of anticoagulation with a hazard ration of 2.7. CONCLUSION: Using MPH hemostatic powder for post-procedural hemostasis was shown to result in a significant reduction in the rate of overall post-procedural complications (a composite endpoint of hematoma and infections), and a trend in reduction of the infections rates and device implantation site hematoma rates.

Atrial Fibrillation in Cardiac Sarcoidosis.

Sarcoidosis is a systemic granulomatous disease that affects the myocardium. Although ventricular arrhythmias are well known manifestations of cardiac involvement, there is increasing evidence that a significant proportion of patients with cardiac sarcoidosis (CS) also have atrial arrhythmias, atrial fibrillation being the most frequent. The incidence and mechanism of atrial fibrillation in CS is not precisely known. The management of atrial fibrillation in patients with CS is currently done according to the general guidelines for management of atrial fibrillation. Evidence is emerging regarding the additional role of immunosuppression for the treatment of atrial arrhythmias in CS. This paper reviews the incidence, possible mechanisms and treatment strategies of atrial fibrillation in patients with CS.

Telmisartan and cardioprotection.

Cardiovascular risk reduction has been the target of several large clinical trials in the last decade. As the activation of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) plays a central role in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease, RAAS blockade has been suggested to be among the most efficient cardioprotective interventions, as revealed with the angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors trials. The angiotensin receptor blockers' (ARBs) efficacy in lowering blood pressure has been very well established. Telmisartan is however the first ARB to show a promising role in reducing cardiovascular risk in high-risk patients. This article will highlight the role of telmisartan in cardioprotection, underlying specifically the results of two major randomized controlled trials: ONTARGET (ONgoing Telmisartan Alone and in combination with Ramipril Global Endpoint Trial) and TRANSCEND (Telmisartan Randomized AssessmeNt Study in aCE-iNtolerant subjects with cardiovascular Disease).