Objectives:
The aim of this study was to determine the mechanisms and effectiveness of pulmonary antrum radial-linear (PAR) ablation in comparison with pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) in patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF) after a long-term follow-up.
Background:
The one-year follow up data suggested that PAR ablation appeared to have a better outcome over the conventional PVI for paroxysmal AF.
Methods:
The enrollment occurred between March, 2011, and August, 2011, with the last follow-up in May, 2014. A total of 133 patients with documented paroxysmal AF were enrolled from 5 centers and randomized to PAR group or PVI group. Event ECG recorder and Holter monitoring were conductedduring the follow-up for all patients.
Results:
The average procedure time was 151±23 min in PAR group and 178±43 min in PVI group (
P
<0.001). The average fluoroscopy time was 21±7 min in PAR group and 27±11 min in PVI group (
P=
0.002). AF triggering foci were eliminated in 59 patients (89.4%) in PAR group, whereas, only 4 patients (6.0%) in PVI group (P<0.001).At median 36 (37-35) months of follow-up after single ablation procedure, 43 of 66 patients in PAR group (65%) and 28 of 67 patients in PVI group (42%) had no recurrence of AF off antiarrhythmic drug (AAD) (P=0.007); and 47 of 66 patients in PAR group (71%) and 32 of 67 patients in PVI group (48%) had no recurrence of AF with AAD (P=0.006). At the last follow-up, the burden of AF was significantly lower in PAR group than in PVI group (0.9% ± 2.3% vs 4.9% ± 9.9%;90th percentile, 5.5% vs 19.6%; P=0.008). No major adverse event (death, stroke, PV stenosis) was observed in all the patients except one case of pericardial tamponade.
Conclusions:
PAR ablation is a simple, safe, and effective strategy for the treatment of paroxysmal AF with better long-term outcome than PVI. PAR ablation might exhibit the beneficial effect on AF management through multiple mechanisms.
Registration:
ChiCTR-TRC-11001191
Long-Term Follow-Up After Catheter Ablation of Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation
