Predictors of Arrhythmia Recurrence After Cryoballoon Ablation for Persistent Atrial Fibrillation: A Sub-Analysis of...

Freedom from recurrences of atrial tachyarrhythmia (ATA) is suboptimal after pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) in patients with persistent atrial fibrillation (PsAF). This sub-analysis from the Cryo Global Registry sought to investigate predictors of ablation success after PVI using cryoballoon ablation (CBA) for PsAF.

ATA recurrence was defined as ≥ 30 s recurrence of atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter or atrial tachycardia after a 90-day blanking period and through 12-months. Univariate and multivariable Cox regression analysis (with ATA recurrence as an endpoint) was performed to identify CBA responders. PsAF patients (N = 882) were on average 63.9 ± 11.3 years old (69.2% male), and freedom from ATA recurrence was 79.7% (76.8%-82.2%). Longer elapsed time from PsAF diagnosis to ablation (hazard ratio [HR] 1.07 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.03-1.11); p = 0.002) and a larger number of previously failed antiarrhythmic drugs (HR 1.39 (95% CI: 1.13-1.70); p < 0.002) were shown to be independent predictors of ATA recurrence in a multivariate model which included 703 evaluated patients.

These real-world results provide important insights to guide referral of PsAF patients, including the benefits of earlier treatment via CBA.