Aims
The prevalence and incidence of atrial fibrillation (AF) significantly increase with
age. Catheter ablation is already recommended in the guidelines for this selected
elderly population. This study aimed to explore the safety and effectiveness of AF
catheter ablation in patients aged ≥80 years.
Methods
The data were based on the China-AF study. Patients with AF aged ≥80 years who received
catheter ablation from August 2011 to December 2020 were selected. Catheter ablation
included bilateral circumferential pulmonary vein antrum isolation with or without
additional linear ablation. Patients were followed up every 6 months. Arrhythmia-free
curves were generated using Kaplan-Meier analysis. Cox proportional hazards regression
models were used to analyse the predictors for post-ablation recurrence.
Results
A total of 270 patients were included in the study. Many patients had comorbidities:
73.7% had hypertension and 29.3% had diabetes mellitus. All patients achieved successful
bilateral circumferential pulmonary vein antrum isolation. Total complications were
noted in nine of 270 (3.3%) patients and nine of 286 (3.1%) ablation procedures. After
the first ablation procedure, 74% of the whole cohort—78% patients with paroxysmal
AF, and 66% patients with persistent AF – were free from atrial tachyarrhythmia at
follow-up to 12 months. Patients with persistent AF, longer AF duration, and history
of ischaemic stroke were more likely to have AF recurrence.
Conclusion
Patients with AF aged ≥80 years, although with many comorbidities, had low complication
rates and favourable outcomes after catheter ablation. Catheter ablation was a safe
and effective treatment to achieve sinus rhythm in the selected elderly patients.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: March 15, 2022
Accepted:
February 5,
2022
Received in revised form:
January 21,
2022
Received:
September 22,
2021
Identification
Copyright
© 2022 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Australian and New Zealand Society of Cardiac and Thoracic Surgeons (ANZSCTS) and the Cardiac Society of Australia and New Zealand (CSANZ).
