Prevalence and characteristics of left atrial tachycardia following left atrial catheter ablation.
BACKGROUND
Left atrial tachycardia (AT) is a complication of left atrial catheter ablation (LACA) of atrial fibrillation (AF). However, its prevalence and characteristics have not been sufficiently clarified.


METHODS
We divided 121 patients who underwent LACA into 2 groups based on the results of AT occurrence after LACA (follow-up period; 12 +/- 7 months): an AT+ group and AT- group.


RESULTS
New-onset left AT occurred in 30 patients (25%) 31 +/- 51 days after LACA. Among the 26 patients with an early onset of AT, 4 underwent a second ablation for AT, and 21 became free of AT within 6 months without a repeat ablation procedure. Among the 4 patients with a late onset of AT (> 2 months after the LACA), the tachycardia remitted without a repeat ablation procedure in a single patient within 6 months. Among 71 patients who underwent LACA with additional ablation lines, 22 (31%) developed new-onset left AT. Among 50 patients who underwent LACA alone, 8 (16%) developed new-onset left AT (P = 0.02).


CONCLUSIONS
New-onset left AT is a frequent complication of LACA for AF, especially in men and in patients with a low left ventricular ejection fraction. Early (< 2 months) onset AT does not require a repeat ablation because it often represents a transient phenomenon and disappears spontaneously.
Hashimoto
Toru
T
Division of Cardiology, Gunma Prefectural Cardiovascular Center, Maebashi, Japan. hashi777@jichi.ac.jp
Tada
Hiroshi
H
Naito
Shigeto
S
Miyaji
Kohei
K
Yamada
Minoru
M
Tadokoro
Kazuyoshi
K
Kaseno
Kenichi
K
Oshima
Shigeru
S
Taniguchi
Koichi
K
D000368:Aged; D001281:Atrial Fibrillation / Q000601:surgery*; D017115:Catheter Ablation / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012086:Reoperation; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors; D013612:Tachycardia, Ectopic Atrial / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology*