Video-assisted epicardial ablation and left atrial appendage exclusion for atrial fibrillation: extended follow-up.

Background: New ablation technologies have spurred development of less invasive operations for atrial fibrillation. The long-term efficacy of these procedures is unknown.

Methods: This was a retrospective study of 22 patients aged 63 +/- 9 years with symptomatic, intermittent atrial fibrillation who underwent video-assisted, thoracoscopic pulmonary vein isolation and left atrial appendage exclusion from April 2004 through July 2005.