In which patients with heart failure should ablation of atrial
fibrillation not be performed?
Abstract
Catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation (AF) in patients with heart
failure associated with a reduced EF (HFrEF) was associated with a
significantly lower rate of a composite endpoint of death from any cause
or hospitalization for worsening heart failure (HF) than medical therapy
in the CASTLE-AF trial. In patients with HF and also with a preserved EF
(HFpEF), AF is known to be associated with increased mortality. Although
the particular benefit in patients with an EF >35% may
suggest the need for prospective randomized control trial data in
patients with HF to assess the role of ablation as a first-line therapy
as Sessions AJ, et al. stated, we believe at present that 1) whether
there is structural heart disease detected by cardiac images and 2)
whether the left atrial voltage is generally low, should be assessed
“before ablation” in each patient with HF to achieve a successful
ablation.