Catheter ablation of postinfarction ventricular tachycardia: ten-year trends in utilization, in-hospital complications, and in-hospital mortality in the United States.

Background: There is a paucity of data regarding the complications and in-hospital mortality after catheter ablation for ventricular tachycardia (VT) in patients with ischemic heart disease.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the temporal trends in utilization, in-hospital mortality, and complications of catheter ablation of postinfarction VT in the United States.

Methods: We used the 2002-2011 Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS) database to identify all patients ≥18 years of age with a primary diagnosis of VT (International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Edition, Clinical Modification [ICD-9-CM] code 427.

Relation of smoking status to outcomes after cardiopulmonary resuscitation for in-hospital cardiac arrest.

In-hospital cardiac arrest (IHCA) is common and is associated with poor prognosis. Data on the effect of smoking on outcomes after IHCA are limited. We analyzed the Nationwide Inpatient Sample databases from 2003 to 2011 for all patients aged≥18 years who underwent cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for IHCA to examine the differences in survival to hospital discharge and neurologic status between smokers and nonsmokers.

Method for differentiating left superior pulmonary vein exit conduction from pseudo-exit conduction.

Background: Electrical isolation of pulmonary vein (PV) conduction from the left atrium (LA) is the cornerstone of successful atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation. Exit block is confirmed by the absence of LA capture during pacing from a circular mapping catheter positioned in the PV; however, far-field capture of the left atrial appendage (LAA) (pseudo-pulmonary vein exit conduction) can occur. In this study, we evaluated a methodology for identifying pseudo-exit conduction.

Differential effects of adenosine on pulmonary vein ectopy after pulmonary vein isolation: implications for arrhythmogenesis.

Background: The mechanism of pulmonary vein (PV) triggers of atrial fibrillation remains unclear. We performed adenosine (ADO) testing after PV isolation to characterize spontaneous dissociated PV rhythm and ADO-induced PV ectopy.

Methods And Results: Seventy-four patients (61 men; age, 61±10 years) undergoing PV isolation for atrial fibrillation were studied.