title: Long-term follow-up after right atrial radiofrequency catheter treatment of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation.
abstract: Catheter ablation of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation using long linear lesions in the right atrium is still under investigation, and its long-term follow-up is unknown.
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty-six men and nine women (aged 51 +/- 12 years) with symptomatic daily episodes of AF for 6 +/- 5 years despite the use of 4.7 +/- 1.5 antiarrhythmic drugs were studied between July 1994 and January 1996. Progressively longer ablation lines were performed in 3 groups of 15 consecutive patients each, using a 14-electrode catheter or a single-electrode dragging technique. Success was defined as atrial fibrillation elimination or recurrence for no longer than 6 hours over 3 months of observation. Patients who had fewer than 6 hours of atrial fibrillation per month were considered "improved." Medium- (11 +/- 4 months) and long-term (26 +/- 5 months) results were assessed clinically from a patient's diary and from Holter recordings.
  
  
  RESULTS
  After a follow-up of 11 months, 24 patients had a favorable result of the ablation procedure with or without additional antiarrhythmic drug therapy, representing 53% of the original cohort. After 26 +/- 5 months of follow-up, these successful results were reduced to 17 patients (37%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  After linear atrial ablation, a significant long-term attrition of arrhythmia-free patients was observed. This may be due to a combination of disease progression, incomplete linear block, and ineffective ablation of arrhythmogenic triggers.
authors.affiliation: Hopital Cardiologique du Haut-Leveque, Bordeaux, France.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Jaïs
authors.forename: D C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Shah
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Takahashi
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hocini
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Haïssaguerre
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Clémenty
mesh_terms: D001281:Atrial Fibrillation / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000601:surgery*; D017115:Catheter Ablation / Q000379:methods; D015716:Electrocardiography, Ambulatory; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome