No death or myocardial infa rct ion was reported .
CONCLUSION ' PVI-plus ' involving 2G-CB seems to be safe and effective for treating PerAF
BACKGROUND Growing evidence suggests that second-generation cryoballoon ablation ( 2G-CB ) is effective in patients with persistent atrial fibrillation ( PerAF ) .
The cornerstone of atrial fibrillation ( AF ) ablation is pulmonary vein isolation ( PVI ) .
The purpose of this study was to summarize the available data on the safety and mid-term ( ≥ 12 months ) effectiveness of a ' PVI-only ' strategy vs. a ' PVI-plus ' strategy using 2G-CB in patients with PerAF .
Cryoballoon or radiofrequency ablation for symptomatic paroxysmal atrial fibrillation: reintervention, rehospitalization, and quality-of-life outcomes in the FIRE AND ICE trial
Abstract Aims The primary safety and efficacy endpoints of the r and omized FIRE AND ICE trial have recently demonstrated non-inferiority of cryoballoon vs. radiofrequency current ( RFC ) catheter ablation in patients with drug-refractory symptomatic paroxysmal atrial fibrillation ( AF ) . The aim of the current study was to assess outcome parameters that are important for the daily clinical management of patients using key secondary analyses . Specifically , re interventions , rehospitalizations , and quality -of-life were examined in this r and omized trial of cryoballoon vs. RFC catheter ablation . Methods and results Patients ( 374 subjects in the cryoballoon group and 376 subjects in the RFC group ) were evaluated in the modified intention-to-treat cohort . After the index ablation , log-rank testing over 1000 days of follow-up demonstrated that there were statistically significant differences in favour of cryoballoon ablation with respect to repeat ablations ( 11.8 % cryoballoon vs. 17.6 % RFC ; P = 0.03 ) , direct-current cardioversions ( 3.2 % cryoballoon vs. 6.4 % RFC ; P = 0.04 ) , all-cause rehospitalizations ( 32.6 % cryoballoon vs. 41.5 % RFC ; P = 0.01 ) , and cardiovascular rehospitalizations ( 23.8 % cryoballoon vs. 35.9 % RFC ; P < 0.01 ) . There were no statistical differences between groups in the quality -of-life surveys ( both mental and physical ) as measured by the Short Form-12 health survey and the EuroQol five-dimension question naire . There was an improvement in both mental and physical quality -of-life in all patients that began at 6 months after the index ablation and was maintained throughout the 30 months of follow-up . Conclusion Patients treated with cryoballoon as opposed to RFC ablation had significantly fewer repeat ablations , direct-current cardioversions , all-cause rehospitalizations , and cardiovascular rehospitalizations during follow-up . Both patient groups improved in quality -of-life scores after AF ablation . Clinical trial registration Clinical Trials.gov identifier : NCT01490814
No death or myocardial infa rct ion was reported .
CONCLUSION ' PVI-plus ' involving 2G-CB seems to be safe and effective for treating PerAF
BACKGROUND Growing evidence suggests that second-generation cryoballoon ablation ( 2G-CB ) is effective in patients with persistent atrial fibrillation ( PerAF ) .
The cornerstone of atrial fibrillation ( AF ) ablation is pulmonary vein isolation ( PVI ) .
The purpose of this study was to summarize the available data on the safety and mid-term ( ≥ 12 months ) effectiveness of a ' PVI-only ' strategy vs. a ' PVI-plus ' strategy using 2G-CB in patients with PerAF .