Nelson Barrera

and 7 more

Background and Aims Atrial fibrillation is the most prevalent cardiac arrhythmia, and catheter ablation (CA) has emerged as a viable option for selected patients. However, its role in specific liver cirrhosis (LC) populations remains underexplored. Methods Using the National Inpatient Sample Database 2016–2020, we analyzed adult encounters undergoing CA for atrial fibrillation diagnosed with LC. Using propensity scores, encounters were divided into 2 cohorts based on the presence and absence of LC and matched in a 1:1 fashion using LC as the dependent variable. In-hospital mortality and post-procedure total complications were compared using logistic regression models and linear regression for length of stay and total cost of hospitalization. Results We identified 93,830 atrial fibrillation CA admissions, of which 910 had LC. The mean age in the LC cohort was 66.5±5.1 years. Mortality did not significantly differ between the groups (aOR=0.85; 95%CI=0.28-2.60; P=0.77). However, the LC cohort exhibited higher odds of total complications (aOR=2.00; 95%CI=1.11-3.48; p<0.01). Length of stay was comparable, but total cost showed statistically significant differences among the two cohorts: 6.7 days (95%CI=6.8-7.46; P<0.0001) vs. 6.3 days (95%CI=5.4-7.2;p<0.0001) and $184,000 (95%CI=$169 000-$201 000; P<0.0001) vs. $193,000 (95%CI=$171 000-$216 000;p<0.0001), respectively. Conclusion In the 2016-2020 National Inpatient Sample, patients who underwent atrial fibrillation CA with LC, mortality, and length of stay were comparable. However, the likelihood of total complications was higher to a propensity score‐matched cohort of no cirrhotics patients. Further, longitudinal studies are needed it to assess the safety profile of CA in this sub-population