Elevated liver fibrosis-4 index predicts recurrence after catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation in patients with heart failure.

BACKGROUND: The fibrosis-4 (FIB-4) index is a noninvasive scoring system that is used to assess the progression of liver fibrosis. This study aimed to assess whether the FIB-4 index is associated with recurrent atrial fibrillation (AF) after catheter ablation in patients with and without heart failure (HF). METHODS: We included 1,184 patients who underwent initial AF catheter ablation between 2016 and 2021. The patients were classified into low-risk (< 1.3), intermediate-risk (1.3-2.67), and high-risk (> 2.67) groups based on their FIB-4 indices at baseline. The patients were divided into HF (n = 552) and non-HF groups (n = 632); the HF group was further divided into paroxysmal AF (PAF) and non-PAF groups. AF recurrence after catheter ablation was then compared among the groups. RESULTS: In the non-HF group, no significant differences in recurrence after ablation were observed between the low-(n = 219), intermediate-(n = 364), and high-risk (n = 49) groups. In contrast, in the HF group, the intermediate-(n = 341) and high-risk (n = 112) groups had significantly higher recurrence rates than the low-risk group (n = 99) (log-rank test, p = 0.005). This association remained significant after multivariate analysis (hazard ratio [HR]:1.374; p = 0.027). The FIB-4 index increased incrementally as the brain natriuretic peptide levels and severity of tricuspid regurgitation increased. The FIB-4 index was an independent predictor of recurrence in the non-PAF HF group (HR:1.498; p = 0.007) but not in the PAF group. CONCLUSIONS: The FIB-4 index may be a useful predictor of AF recurrence after catheter ablation in patients with HF, particularly in those with non-PAF.

Antidromic and orthodromic reciprocating tachycardias over a novel left-sided accessory pathway involving the vein of Marshall and coronary sinus musculature.

INTRODUCTION: Herein, we present a rare case of the successful ablation of an accessory pathway (AP) involving the Marshall Bundle (MB) and coronary sinus musculature (CSM) in a 40-year-old man with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome. METHODS AND RESULTS: An orthodromic reciprocating tachycardia (ORT) was inducible with the earliest atrial activation site located at the posterolateral mitral annulus. The local conduction and the cycle length of ORT was prolonged by peri-mitral ablation; however, it failed to block the AP. The atrial insertion of the AP was identified by remapping during ORT at the left atrial ridge, which was away from the mitral annulus, where ablation was successful. Together with the electrophysiological findings in CSM potentials, we conclude that the epicardial MB-CSM connection functioned as the AP in this patient. CONCLUSION: The novel variant form of AP comprised of MB and CSM should be noted. The atrial insertion of the MB may be the target of catheter ablation.

Association Between Catheter Ablation for Nonparoxysmal Atrial Fibrillation and Functional Mitral Regurgitation in Patients With Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction.

Functional mitral regurgitation (FMR) often coexists with atrial fibrillation (AF) and may have a causal relation with AF persistence and exacerbation of heart failure (HF). The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of FMR on AF catheter ablation (AFCA) outcomes and improvement in FMR after AFCA in patients with HF with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) and nonparoxysmal AF. Excluding patients with primary valve disease or post-mitral valve repair, 280 patients with HFpEF who underwent CA for nonparoxysmal AF were retrospectively included. All patients completed 1-year follow-up and were assessed for FMR, AF recurrence and HF parameters, including echocardiography. At baseline, FMR was present in 153 (54.6%) patients (mild, n = 112; moderate, n = 40; severe, n = 1), and these were decreased to 70 (25%) significantly 1 year after AFCA (mild, n = 64; moderate, n = 6), 119 patients (78%) had improvement in MR (a decrease of ≥1 level in the severity from baseline to 1 year on echocardiography). Overall, 274 patients (97.9%) had sinus rhythm at the 1-year examination, and recurrent AF-free survival did not differ in patients with and without MR improvement (83.2% vs 82.4%, p = 0.908). However, the MR improvement group had a significantly lower cardiothoracic ratio, left atrial diameter, E/e', and B-type natriuretic peptide levels after 1 year than those in the MR nonimprovement group. In conclusion, the majority of the HFpEF patients with nonparoxysmal AF had improvement of FMR after AFCA with the high maintenance of sinus rhythm, leading to a virtuous cycle of cardiac function.

Excimer laser coronary angioplasty versus manual aspiration thrombectomy in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction: analyzed by nuclear scintigraphy.

Clinical outcomes concerning the efficacy of excimer laser coronary angioplasty (ELCA) in real-world cases of acute myocardial infarction (MI) are limited. We evaluated and compared the impact of ELCA with manual aspiration thrombectomy on myocardial salvage and left ventricular (LV) systolic/diastolic function in patients with ST-segment elevation MI (STEMI) using nuclear scintigraphy.  We enrolled 143 consecutive patients with STEMI treated with ELCA (63 patients) or manual aspiration thrombectomy (80 patients) between September 2016 and December 2020 in a single-center hospital. We evaluated the peak creatine kinase (CK)/ creatine kinase-myocardial band (CK-MB) levels and performed single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) analyses with Quantitative Gated SPECT and Quantitative Perfusion SPECT (Auto QUANT 7.2) at 3-10 days using 123I-BMIPP and 3 months following percutaneous coronary intervention using 99mTc-tetrofosmin to evaluate myocardial salvage and LV systolic/diastolic function. No significant difference was observed in the patient and periprocedural characteristics. Peak CK-MB level was significantly different between the groups (ELCA group, 190.0 [70.5-342.0] IU/L vs. aspiration group, 256.5 [157.0-354.8] IU/L, p = 0.047). Although no significant difference was observed in myocardial salvage, significant improvement in the LV ejection fraction (14.1 [6.2-19.8]% vs. 9.5 [3.9-15.3]%, respectively, p = 0.018) and peak emptying rate (-0.54 [-1.02- (-0.27)] mL/s vs. -0.38 [-0.76- (-0.05)] mL/s, respectively, p = 0.017) were detected. ELCA could suppress the myocardial deviation enzymes and potentially improve systolic function compared to manual aspiration thrombectomy in patients with STEMI.

Catheter Ablation for Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation With Sick Sinus Syndrome: Insights From the Kansai Plus Atrial Fibrillation Registry.

BACKGROUND: Coexisting sick sinus syndrome (SSS) is associated with both electrical and structural atrial remodelling in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). Limited data are available concerning catheter ablation (CA) for AF in this condition. This study investigated the efficacy of CA as a curative therapy for AF and SSS in a large-scale prospective multicentre registry. METHODS: The Kansai Plus Atrial Fibrillation (KPAF) registry enrolled 5,010 consecutive patients who underwent CA for AF; this included 3,133 patients with paroxysmal AF (mean age, 66 years; male, 69.3%; mean CHA2DS2-VASc score, 2.05±1.50; SSS, n=315 [tachy-brady syndrome, n=285]). The endpoints included the recurrence of AF with a blanking period of 90 days after CA, and de novo pacemaker implantation during the follow-up period (median duration, 2.93 years). RESULTS: The AF-free survival did not significantly differ between patients with and those without SSS (n=2,818) after the initial (log-rank p=0.864) and final sessions (log-rank p=0.268). Pacemakers were implanted in 48 patients with SSS, and implantation in this group was significantly associated with AF recurrence, including early recurrence (adjusted odds ratio, 3.57; 95% confidence interval, 1.67-7.64; p=0.002). The remaining 85.3% of patients with SSS did not require pacemaker implantation at 3 years after CA. CONCLUSIONS: Coexisting SSS did not adversely affect recurrence-free survival after CA for paroxysmal AF. Pacemaker implantation was not required in most patients with SSS, with AF recurrence serving as a strong predictor for this.

High Internal Atrial Defibrillation Threshold Is Related to a High Risk of Recurrence After Catheter Ablation for Long-Standing Persistent Atrial Fibrillation But Not for Persistent Atrial Fibrillation.

BACKGROUND: The atrial defibrillation threshold (ADFT) for internal cardioversion is theoretically related to the critical mass for sustaining atrial fibrillation (AF). OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the association of ADFT for internal cardioversion with the outcome of catheter ablation for non-paroxysmal AF (non-PAF). METHODS: We included 368 consecutive patients who underwent first-time catheter ablation for non-PAF. Based on the degree of ADFT recorded by the internal cardioversion before pulmonary vein isolation, we divided the patients into low ADFT (<20 J) and high ADFT (≥20 J) groups and analysed the association between ADFT and atrial tachyarrhythmia recurrence. RESULTS: There were 234 and 134 patients in the low and high ADFT groups, respectively. Of these, 39 patients (16.7%) and 41 (30.6%) patients, respectively, had atrial tachyarrhythmia recurrence during the 2.6±1.0 year follow-up. The high ADFT group showed a significantly higher atrial tachyarrhythmia recurrence than the low ADFT group (p=0.002). This finding was also noted in patients with long-standing persistent AF (p=0.032) but not in patients with persistent AF (p=0.159). The significant predictors of arrhythmia recurrence on multivariate analysis were high ADFT (p=0.004) and long-standing persistent AF (p=0.011). In multivariate analysis within the long-standing persistent AF group, only ADFT remained a significant risk factor for AF recurrence (p=0.035). CONCLUSIONS: The high ADFT of internal cardioversion was found to be a risk factor for post-catheter ablation recurrence in patients with long-standing persistent AF but not in those with persistent AF.

Impact of Preoperative Nutritional Status on the Outcome of Catheter Ablation for Atrial Fibrillation.

BACKGROUND: The relationship between nutritional status and the incidence or prognosis of atrial fibrillation (AF) has been reported, but no studies have described the relationship between the outcomes of AF catheter ablation (CA) and nutritional status as assessed by various scoring tools. We aimed to verify the hypothesis that preoperative nutritional status is associated with arrhythmia recurrence after CA for AF.Methods and Results:We evaluated 913 patients (age, 67±10 years; men, 72%; paroxysmal AF, 56%) who underwent CA for AF between November 2011 and November 2017. Patients were systematically followed with an endpoint of atrial tachyarrhythmia recurrence, the predictive value of which was compared among 3 scoring tools (Controlling Nutritional Status [CONUT] score / Geriatric Nutritional Risk Index [GNRI] / Prognostic Nutritional Index [PNI]). Patients were divided into normal nutrition (CONUT <2 [n=637] / GNRI >98 [n=836] / PNI >38 [n=910]) and undernutrition (CONUT ≥2 [n=276] / GNRI ≤98 [n=77] / PNI ≤3 [n=3]) groups. AF recurred in 274 patients (mean follow-up, 2.3±0.8 years). The AF recurrence rate was higher in patients with undernutrition than in those with normal nutrition (CONUT/GNRI) status. Multivariate Cox regression analysis identified undernutrition status (GNRI ≤98) as an independent predictor of atrial tachyarrhythmia recurrence. CONCLUSIONS: The AF recurrence rate after CA was higher in patients with undernutrition than in those with normal nutrition as stratified by the nutrition scoring tools.

Cryoablation for atrioventricular nodal re-entrant tachycardia associated with persistent left superior vena cava.

Catheter ablation for atrioventricular nodal re-entrant tachycardia (AVNRT) in patients with persistent left superior vena cava (PLSVC) is challenging because of anatomical abnormalities of Koch's triangle associated with the enlarged coronary sinus ostium. We present the Case of successful ablation in a patient with PLSVC using the cryoablation technique. The ablation was successfully performed without damaging the conduction system by virtue of "cryomapping" and "cryoadhesion." Cryoablation is a safe and efficacious alternative to radiofrequency catheter ablation for the treatment of AVNRT associated with PLSVC.

Catheter ablation for non-paroxysmal atrial fibrillation accompanied by heart failure with preserved ejection fraction: feasibility and benefits in functions and B-type natriuretic peptide.

AIMS: We aimed to examine the benefits of catheter ablation in patients with non-paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF) accompanied by heart failure (HF) with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), in comparison with the benefits in patients with AF accompanied by HF with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) or patients with no HF. METHODS AND RESULTS: From 1173 consecutive patients undergoing catheter ablation, 502 with non-paroxysmal AF were divided into three groups: no history of HF [plasma B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) <100 pg/mL and no HF hospitalization; n = 125], HFpEF [left ventricular (LV) EF ≥50%; n = 293], and HF with midrange EF (HFmrEF) + HFrEF (LVEF <50%; n = 84) groups. The endpoints were AF recurrence at 1 year, changes in symptomatic and image-based functional status, and changes in BNP levels from baseline to 1 year. In the HFpEF group, AF recurred in 48 patients (16.4%) and 278 patients (94.8%) had sinus rhythm at 1 year; these values were comparable with those in the other groups. Significant improvement was observed in the left atrial diameter, LVEF, and New York Heart Association functional class in the HFpEF and HFmrEF + HFrEF groups. The BNP level significantly decreased irrespective of the index rate control status, and freedom from AF recurrence was an independent predictor of HF remission, defined as BNP <100 pg/mL at 1 year, in the HFpEF group. CONCLUSION: Catheter ablation is highly feasible for restoring sinus rhythm in non-paroxysmal AF with coexisting HFpEF, thereby improving cardiac function and BNP levels. Catheter ablation for AF may be an optional management strategy.