Predictors of ventricular arrhythmia after left ventricular assist device implantation: A large single-center observational study.

Background: Ventricular arrhythmias (VAs) are common in patients after left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the predictors of VAs and their impact on mortality in LVAD patients.

Methods: A total of 98 consecutive patients with an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) (86 [88%] male, mean age 57 ± 10 years), 57 [58%] with nonischemic dilated cardiomyopathy) who had received an LVAD between May 2011 and December 2013 at our institution were included in the study.

Results: Mean left ventricular ejection fraction and left ventricular end-diastolic diameter were 20% ± 8% and 73 ± 11 mm, respectively. Seventy-three patients (75%) had atrial fibrillation (AF). During the 12 months before LVAD implantation, 38 patients (39%) had experienced ≥1 episode of VAs (11.5 ± 20) requiring ICD therapies. The number of patients with VAs was comparable among all types of ICDs (P = .48). During the 12-month follow-up after LVAD implantation, 48 patients (49%) experienced ≥1 episode of VAs (30 ± 98) with appropriate ICD therapies. The prevalence of VAs was significantly higher among patients with pre-LVAD VAs compared to those without VAs during the year before LVAD implantation (66% vs 38%; P = .008). In a binary multiple logistic regression analysis, pre-LVAD VAs (hazard ratio 5.36, 95% confidence interval 2.0-14.3; P = .001) and AF (hazard ratio 3.1, 95% confidence interval 1.1-11.9; P = .024) predicted post-LVAD VAs.

Conclusion: Pre-LVAD VAs and AF predict the occurrence of VAs after LVAD implantation. According to the latest data on the negative impact of post-LVAD VAs on all-cause mortality, further studies should clarify the reasonability of maintaining sinus rhythm in patients with AF and/or prophylactic catheter ablation of ventricular tachycardias before LVAD implantation.