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Estimating Bilateral Atrial Function by Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance Feature Tracking in Patients with Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation
Published on: July 20, 2022
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Atrial Fibrillation-Mediated Cardiomyopathy
Dingxin Qin1, Moussa C Mansour1, Jeremy N Ruskin1
1Corrigan Minehan Heart Center Cardiac Arrhythmia Service, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston.
Circulation. Arrhythmia and Electrophysiology
|December 13, 2019
Summary
Atrial fibrillation-mediated cardiomyopathy (AF-mediated cardiomyopathy) is a reversible cause of heart failure, often underdiagnosed. Early diagnosis and intervention, potentially including AF ablation, are critical for improving patient outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Electrophysiology
Background:
- Atrial fibrillation-mediated cardiomyopathy (AMC) is an underdiagnosed, reversible cause of heart failure.
- AMC involves ventricular dysfunction solely due to or exacerbated by atrial fibrillation (AF).
Purpose of the Study:
- To highlight the clinical significance of AMC.
- To discuss diagnostic tools and therapeutic strategies for AMC.
- To identify knowledge gaps in AMC understanding.
Main Methods:
- Review of clinical evidence correlating AF burden with cardiomyopathy progression.
- Discussion of diagnostic modalities including Cardiac MRI, continuous cardiac monitoring, and biomarkers.
- Analysis of therapeutic outcomes comparing AF ablation with medical management.
Main Results:
- Timely diagnosis and intervention are crucial due to potential for irreversible remodeling.
- Successful AF ablation may improve long-term outcomes, especially in patients with high AF burden and less severe structural heart disease.
- Left ventricle function recovery is more likely with successful ablation in select AMC patients.
Conclusions:
- AMC is a critical, reversible cause of heart failure requiring prompt recognition.
- AF ablation shows promise as a superior therapeutic strategy over medical management for select AMC patients.
- Further research is needed to address existing knowledge gaps regarding AMC epidemiology, mechanisms, diagnosis, and prognosis.
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