Safety and Efficacy of Transvenous Lead Extraction With a High-Frequency Excimer Laser - A Single Center Experience.

Background: Transvenous lead extractions have been performed using 40-Hz laser sheaths. Recently, a new 80-Hz laser sheath became available, but only a few reports have compared the effectiveness of the 40- and 80-Hz laser sheaths.

Methods and results: This study included 215 patients.

Left Atrial Appendage Thrombi Formation in Japanese Non-Valvular Atrial Fibrillation Patients During Anticoagulation Therapy - Warfarin vs. Direct Oral Anticoagulants.

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common cardiac arrhythmia, associated with increased cardiovascular morbidity and mortality including thromboembolic events. The aims of this study were to assess the prevalence of left atrial appendage (LAA) thrombi in Japanese non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) patients undergoing preprocedural transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) during anticoagulation therapy, and to compare the efficacy of warfarin and direct oral anticoagulants (DOAC).Methods and Results:This retrospective study reviewed records of 559 consecutive NVAF patients (445 men; age, 62±11 years) undergoing preprocedural TEE following at least 3 weeks of anticoagulation therapy.