Early recurrences after atrial fibrillation ablation are interpreted as a tissue response to an underlying inflammatory process caused by myocyte destruction and, therefore are considered to have no impact on long-term outcomes. Data regarding the predictive value of recurrences during the blanking period (BP) after ablation of atrial tachycardia (AT) has been poorly studied. We aimed to evaluate the predictive value of early recurrences after AT ablation.
Methods:
This study comprised 226 patients (59.1 % male, 40.9 % female, age 65.9 ± 13.5 years) undergoing AT ablation between 2016 and 2021. Long-term outcomes were compared between patients with an early recurrence within 90 days and late recurrence after 90 days.
Results:
Intraprocedural AT termination was achieved in 220 (98%) patients. PVI was performed during the index procedure in 44.8% and additional left atrial substate ablation in 37.2 % patients. Overall, 115 (50,9%) patients experienced recurrence of AT during a mean follow-up time of 382.05 ± 372.9 days. Of them, 52 (45.2 %) had a recurrence during the BP and 63 (54.8 %) after the BP. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis revealed that patients with early recurrences had a significant worse long-term outcome as compared to patients with recurrences after BP (p < 0.0001), particularly if recurrences occur within the first 60 days (figure 1).
Conclusions:
Early recurrence after AT ablation is a strong predictor for further recurrences during long-term follow-up, particularly if they occur within the first 60 days after the procedure.
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