title: Clinical impact of catheter ablation in patients with asymptomatic atrial fibrillation: the IRON-AF (Italian registry on NavX atrial fibrillation ablation procedures) study.
abstract: Whether and to what extent patients with asymptomatic atrial fibrillation (AF) would benefit from catheter ablation has not been investigated. This is the first multicenter prospective study reporting on the outcome of catheter ablation in patients with asymptomatic AF. Consecutive patients (n = 545) referred for AF ablation were prospectively enrolled in a multicenter Italian registry. Of these patients, 54 have asymptomatic AF and composed our patient population. At 24 month follow-up, catheter ablation in asymptomatic AF patients resulted to be as safe and effective as in patients with drug refractory symptomatic AF. Our study provides significant insights on the role of AF ablation in asymptomatic patients. Further studies in much larger cohorts are needed to validate our conclusions.
authors.affiliation: Policlinico Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy. Electronic address: forleo@me.com.
authors.forename: Giovanni B
authors.initials: GB
authors.lastname: Forleo
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: De Martino
authors.forename: Massimo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mantica
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Carreras
authors.forename: Quintino
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Parisi
authors.forename: Gianluca
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Zingarini
authors.forename: Stefania
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Panigada
authors.forename: Enrico
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Romano
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dello Russo
authors.forename: Luigi
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Di Biase
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Natale
authors.forename: Claudio
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Tondo
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D058070:Asymptomatic Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000628:therapy*; D001281:Atrial Fibrillation / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000601:surgery*; D017115:Catheter Ablation / Q000379:methods*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012042:Registries; D016896:Treatment Outcome
keywords: Asymptomatic patients; Atrial fibrillation; Catheter ablation; Survey