Inducibility of atrial flutter in patients with atrioventricular nodal reentrant tachycardia.
BACKGROUND
Previous studies have shown that both atrioventricular nodal reentrant tachycardia (AVNRT) and atrial flutter (AFL) have an area of slow conduction located in the low posterior right atrium near the ostium of the coronary sinus. The aim of this study was to evaluate the inducibility of AFL in patients with AVNRT.


RESULTS
One hundred and seventy patients were prospectively evaluated for inducibility of tricuspid valve - inferior vena cava isthmus-dependent AFL. Two groups of patients were analyzed: 71 patients with inducible AVNRT and 99 control patients without a history of AFL. AFL was induced in a greater percentage of patients with AVNRT (53%) than of control patients (27%, p<0.02). In all 21 patients with AVNRT and inducible AFL before slow pathway ablation, AFL was also inducible after slow pathway ablation. There was no difference in the cycle length of induced AFL before and after ablation.


CONCLUSIONS
AFL was induced in a greater percentage of patients with AVNRT, suggesting that there may be a common area of posteroseptal perinodal atrium participating in the two-tachycardia circuits. However, radiofrequency ablation of the slow pathway of the AVNRT circuit does not influence the inducibility of AFL.
Takagi
Yasuhiro
Y
Department of Cardiovascular Disease, Nihon University School of Medicine, Japan.
Watanabe
Ichiro
I
Okumura
Yasuo
Y
Okubo
Kimie
K
Ashino
Sonoko
S
Kofune
Masayoshi
M
Hashimoto
Kenichi
K
Shindo
Atsushi
A
Sugimura
Hidezou
H
Nakai
Toshiko
T
Saito
Satoshi
S
D000328:Adult; D001282:Atrial Flutter / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D017115:Catheter Ablation / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012850:Sinus of Valsalva / Q000473:pathology; D013611:Tachycardia, Atrioventricular Nodal Reentry / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D014261:Tricuspid Valve / Q000473:pathology