title: Preserved left ventricular ejection fraction following atrioventricular junction ablation and pacing for atrial fibrillation.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Right ventricular apical (RVA) pacing creates ventricular dyssynchrony and may compromise left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). The impact of RVA pacing in patients who have undergone atrioventricular junction (AVJ) ablation for atrial fibrillation (AF) is unclear. We sought to determine whether RVA pacing after AVJ ablation for patients with AF compromises LVEF in the short- or long-term.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We studied 286 patients with AF who underwent AVJ ablation and RVA pacing at our institution between 1990 and 2002. Patients were stratified into a short-term follow-up group (LVEF reassessed by echocardiography within a year after AVJ ablation, n = 134) and a long-term group (LVEF reassessed after a year, n = 152). Among all 286 patients (mean follow-up 20 months), we observed no change in mean LVEF after AVJ ablation and RVA pacing (48% before vs. 48% after, P = 0.42). Short-term follow-up patients had a statistically significant improvement in mean LVEF (46% before vs. 49% after, P = 0.03), whereas there was no statistically significant change in mean LVEF in long-term follow-up patients (49% before vs. 48% after, P = 0.37). Only 9% of short-term patients, 15% of long-term patients, and 1% of patients with baseline LVEF <or= 40% experienced >or=10% absolute decrease in LVEF. Baseline LVEF > 40% was a multivariate predictor of LVEF decline.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  RVA pacing after AVJ ablation does not compromise LVEF in the short- or long-term for the vast majority of patients. Better predictors are needed to help us select patients for biventricular pacing after AVJ ablation.
authors.affiliation: Division of Cardiovascular Diseases, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota 55905, USA.
authors.forename: Lin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hodge
authors.forename: Arshad
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jahangir
authors.forename: Cevher
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ozcan
authors.forename: Jane
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Trusty
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Friedman
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rea
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bradley
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Brady
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hammill
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hayes
authors.forename: Win-Kuang
authors.initials: WK
authors.lastname: Shen
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001281:Atrial Fibrillation / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000628:therapy*; D001283:Atrioventricular Node / Q000601:surgery*; D002304:Cardiac Pacing, Artificial / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017115:Catheter Ablation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015897:Comorbidity; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D018570:Risk Assessment / Q000379:methods; D012307:Risk Factors; D013318:Stroke Volume; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D018487:Ventricular Dysfunction, Left / Q000453:epidemiology*