Atrial fibrillation ablation in systolic dysfunction: clinical and echocardiographic outcomes.

Background: Heart failure and atrial fibrillation (AF) often coexist in a deleterious cycle.

Objective: To evaluate the clinical and echocardiographic outcomes of patients with ventricular systolic dysfunction and AF treated with radiofrequency (RF) ablation.

Methods: Patients with ventricular systolic dysfunction [ejection fraction (EF) <50%] and AF refractory to drug therapy underwent stepwise RF ablation in the same session with pulmonary vein isolation, ablation of AF nests and of residual atrial tachycardia, named "background tachycardia".