Article Impact Level: HIGH Data Quality: STRONG Summary of Clinical Cardiology, 46(10), 1185–1193. https://doi.org/10.1002/clc.24098 Dr. Qingzhi Luo et al.
Points
- This research paper investigates the differences in clinical and electrophysiological characteristics of atrial flutter in patients with and without prior cardiac surgery.
- The study analyzed 42 patients with nonsurgical atrial flutter and 21 with postsurgical atrial flutter.
- The results showed that a smaller percentage of postsurgical patients presented with a typical electrocardiogram (ECG) pattern than nonsurgical patients.
- Electroanatomical mapping revealed that the mean atrial flutter cycle length was longer, and the right atrium volume was larger in the postsurgical group.
- Despite longer procedural and ablation times in the postsurgical group, the acute and long-term ablation success rates were comparable between the two groups.
Summary
Atrial flutter is a common arrhythmia in patients with and without prior cardiac surgery. However, there is limited data on the electrophysiological differences between these two groups. This study aimed to investigate the clinical and electrophysiological characteristics of atrial flutter in patients with and without prior cardiac surgery and evaluate the outcomes of ablation guided by robotic magnetic navigation (RMN) in both groups.
The study retrospectively analyzed 42 patients with nonsurgical atrial flutter and 21 with postsurgical atrial flutter. The results showed that a smaller percentage of postsurgical patients with counterclockwise atrial flutter presented with a typical electrocardiogram (ECG) pattern than nonsurgical patients. Electroanatomical mapping revealed that the mean atrial flutter cycle length was significantly longer, and the right atrium volume was larger in the postsurgical group. The procedural and ablation times were longer in the postsurgical group, but the navigation index was smaller. However, the acute and long-term ablation success rates were comparable between the two groups.
In conclusion, catheter ablation of atrial flutter with and without prior cardiac surgery guided by RMN showed high success rates despite longer procedural and ablation times in the postsurgical group. However, ECG characteristics of the tachycardia may be atypical in patients after cardiac surgery. These findings contribute to a better understanding of the differences in atrial flutter between patients with and without prior cardiac surgery and highlight the effectiveness of RMN-guided ablation in both groups.
Link to the article: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/clc.24098
References Luo, Q., Xie, Y., Bao, Y., Wei, Y., Lin, C., Zhang, N., Ling, T., Chen, K., Pan, W., Wu, L., & Jin, Q. (2023). Different electrophysiological characteristics of cavo‐tricuspid isthmus dependent atrial flutter guided by robotic magnetic navigation in patients with and without prior cardiac surgery. Clinical Cardiology, 46(10), 1185–1193. https://doi.org/10.1002/clc.24098
