Pulsed field ablation prevents left atrial restrictive physiology after posterior wall isolation in patients with persistent atrial fibrillation

Extensive ablation, including posterior wall isolation (PWI) is advocated for radiofrequency ablation (RFA) of persistent atrial fibrillation (peAF) to decrease the high recurrence-rates reported when only pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) is performed.1 However, extensive RFA of the posterior wall may cause fibrosis and “stiff-left-atrium” syndrome.2 3 Magnetic resonance imaging after PVI demonstrates that edema and delayed enhancement are permanent after RFA, but short-lasting after pulsed field ablation (PFA).

Source: Heart Rhythm - March 7, 2024 Category: Cardiology Authors: Ariel Banai, Ehud Chorin, Arie Lorin Schwartz, Yuval Levi, Hend Sliman, Omri Feder, Dana Viskin, Sami Viskin, Shmuel Banai, Raphael Rosso Source Type: research