title: Efficacy and safety of the second generation cryoballoon ablation for the treatment of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation in patients over 75 years: a comparison with a younger cohort.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  In this double centre, retrospective study, we aimed to analyse the 1-year efficacy and safety of cryoballoon ablation (CB-A) in patients older than 75 years compared with those younger than 75-years old.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Fifty-three consecutive patients aged 75 years or older with drug-resistant paroxysmal AF (PAF) who underwent pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) by the means of second generation CB-A, were compared with 106 patients aged <75 years. The mean age in the study group (>75 years) was 78.19 ± 2.7 years and 58.97 ± 8.5 in the control group. At 1-year follow-up the global success rate was 83.6% and did not significantly differ between older (10/53) and younger patients (16/106) (81.1 vs. 84.9%, P = 0.54). Transient phrenic nerve palsy was the most common complication which occurred in eight patients in the younger group and in three in the older group (7.5 vs. 5.7%, respectively, P = 0.66).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results of our study showed that CB-A for the treatment of PAF is a feasible and safe procedure in elderly patients, with similar success and complications rates when compared with a younger population.
authors.affiliation: Heart Rhythm Management Center, UZ Brussel-VUB, Avenue du Laerbeek 101, 1090 Jette - Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Juan-Pablo
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Abugattas
authors.affiliation: Heart Rhythm Management Center, UZ Brussel-VUB, Avenue du Laerbeek 101, 1090 Jette - Brussels, Belgium.|Electrophysiology Unit, Villa Maria Cecilia, Via Corriera, 1, 48033 Cotignola RA, Italy.
authors.forename: Saverio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Iacopino
authors.affiliation: Heart Rhythm Management Center, UZ Brussel-VUB, Avenue du Laerbeek 101, 1090 Jette - Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Darragh
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Moran
authors.affiliation: Heart Rhythm Management Center, UZ Brussel-VUB, Avenue du Laerbeek 101, 1090 Jette - Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Valentina
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: De Regibus
authors.affiliation: Heart Rhythm Management Center, UZ Brussel-VUB, Avenue du Laerbeek 101, 1090 Jette - Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Ken
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Takarada
authors.affiliation: Electrophysiology and Cardiac Pacing Unit, Istituto di Cura Città di Pavia, Via Parco Vecchio, 27, 27100 Pavia PV, Italy.
authors.forename: Giacomo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mugnai
authors.affiliation: Heart Rhythm Management Center, UZ Brussel-VUB, Avenue du Laerbeek 101, 1090 Jette - Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Erwin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ströker
authors.affiliation: Heart Rhythm Management Center, UZ Brussel-VUB, Avenue du Laerbeek 101, 1090 Jette - Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Hugo Enrique
authors.initials: HE
authors.lastname: Coutiño-Moreno
authors.affiliation: Heart Rhythm Management Center, UZ Brussel-VUB, Avenue du Laerbeek 101, 1090 Jette - Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Rajin
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Choudhury
authors.affiliation: Electrophysiology and Cardiac Pacing Unit, Istituto di Cura Città di Pavia, Via Parco Vecchio, 27, 27100 Pavia PV, Italy.
authors.forename: Cesare
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Storti
authors.affiliation: Heart Rhythm Management Center, UZ Brussel-VUB, Avenue du Laerbeek 101, 1090 Jette - Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Yves
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: De Greef
authors.affiliation: Cliniques de L'Europe St Elizabeth, Avenue De Fré 206, 1180 Uccle - Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Gaetano
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Paparella
authors.affiliation: Heart Rhythm Management Center, UZ Brussel-VUB, Avenue du Laerbeek 101, 1090 Jette - Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Pedro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Brugada
authors.affiliation: Heart Rhythm Management Center, UZ Brussel-VUB, Avenue du Laerbeek 101, 1090 Jette - Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Carlo
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: de Asmundis
authors.affiliation: Heart Rhythm Management Center, UZ Brussel-VUB, Avenue du Laerbeek 101, 1090 Jette - Brussels, Belgium.
authors.forename: Gian-Battista
authors.initials: GB
authors.lastname: Chierchia
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001281:Atrial Fibrillation / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D001530:Belgium; D062906:Cardiac Catheters; D017115:Catheter Ablation / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D003452:Cryosurgery / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D004867:Equipment Design; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D059348:Peripheral Nerve Injuries / Q000209:etiology; D010791:Phrenic Nerve / Q000293:injuries; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D011667:Pulmonary Veins / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D012008:Recurrence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome
keywords: Atrial fibrillation; Cryoballoon; Elderly; Second-generation cryoballoon