Spanish catheter ablation registry. 23rd official report of the Heart Rhythm Association of the Spanish Society of Cardiology (2023).

Introduction And Objectives: We report the results of the 2023 Spanish catheter ablation registry.

Methods: Procedural data were collected and incorporated into the REDCap platform by all participating centers through a specific form.

Results: There were 104 participating centers in 2023 compared with 103 in 2022.

Repeated procedures at the generator pocket are a determinant of implantable cardioverter-defibrillator infection.

Background: Rates of cardiac-device infections have increased in recent years, but the current incidence and risk factors for infection in patients with implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) are not well known.

Hypothesis: The increasing number of ICD infections is related to accumulated pocket manipulations over time.

Methods: This single-center, prospective study included patients that underwent ICD implantation from 2008 to 2015.

Left Atrial Geometry Improves Risk Prediction of Thromboembolic Events in Patients With Atrial Fibrillation.

Background: Left atrial (LA) sphericity (LASP) is a new remodeling parameter based on LA shape analysis, with independent predictive value for recurrence after atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation.

Objectives: To evaluate the association between LASP and thromboembolic events (TE) in patients with AF.

Methods: Twenty-nine AF patients and prior TE and 29 age- and gender-matched controls were included.

Remote Magnetic Navigation for Catheter Ablation in Patients With Congenital Heart Disease: A Review.

In patients with congenital heart disease, challenges to catheter-based arrhythmia interventions are unique and numerous given the complexity of the underlying defects, anatomic and surgical intervention variants including baffles, conduits, patches, and/or shunts. Remote magnetic navigation offers significant advantages in these cases that may present with limited vascular access or difficult access to the target cardiac chambers implicated by the previous surgical interventions. We reviewed the data available on the safety, feasibility, and effectiveness of magnetic navigation for the treatment of arrhythmia in congenital heart disease and discussed the specific challenges related to various congenital defects and repair with the potential advantages offered by magnetic navigation in these circumstances.

Impact of Contact Force Monitoring in Acute Pulmonary Vein Isolation Using an Anatomic Approach. A Randomized Study.

Background: The impact of contact force (CF) monitoring in pulmonary vein (PV) isolation after a circumferential anatomic ablation (CAA) is unknown. We analyze the usefulness of CF monitoring in acute PV isolation and procedure parameters using a CAA.

Methods: Fifty patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation were randomized into CF-on (CF >10 grams; n = 25) or CF-off (CF blinded; n = 25) groups.

Contact force threshold for permanent lesion formation in atrial fibrillation ablation: A cardiac magnetic resonance-based study to detect ablation gaps.

Background: Catheter contact force (CF) has a strong correlation with lesion formation during radiofrequency ablation. Delayed-enhancement cardiac magnetic resonance (DE-CMR) provides lesion information in patients with prior atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation.

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the CF threshold to create permanent lesions detected by DE-CMR.

Reverse atrial remodeling following pulmonary vein isolation: the importance of the body mass index.

Background: Pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) causes a reduction in left atrium size that is attributable to reverse atrial remodeling (RAR). The objective of this study was to identify predictors of RAR and determine its association with other parameters of improvement in cardiac function.

Methods: It is a prospective study with 74 patients (52 ± 9 years old, 81% male), and 51% of patients had paroxysmal atrial fibrillation.

Paroxysmal atrial fibrillation burden before and after pulmonary veins isolation: an observational study through a subcutaneous leadless cardiac monitor.

Aims: Data on the success rate of ablation in atrial fibrillation (AF) are controversial. Our hypothesis is that the efficacy must be evaluated considering the AF burden (AFB) before the procedure. Moreover, the clinical significance of early recurrence (ERAT) of AF or atrial tachyarrhythmias (AT) is debatable.