Korean patients with atrial fibrillation 'Cooling balloon resection' demonstrated long-term effectiveness
Nov 13, 2024
A research team led by Professor Oh Il-young of the Department of Circulatory Medicine at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital has published the results of a study that analyzed the long-term effects of cooling balloon resection on patients with atrial fibrillation in Korea.
Atrial fibrillation is a type of arrhythmia that causes irregular beats by generating abnormal electrical signals in various places within the atrium. It was short in the beginningIt appears as a 'raptive atrial fibrillation' that repeats the disappearance, but progresses to 'persistent atrial fibrillation' that does not disappear over time and lasts for a long time.
Cooling balloon resection, one of the ways to treat atrial fibrillation, is a procedure that blocks abnormal electrical signals that cause atrial fibrillation by blocking the entrance to the pulmonary vein connected to the atrium with a frozen balloon at temperatures below -89 degrees Celsius. Although the procedure time is relatively short and the incidence of complications is low, studies on the long-term effects of cooling balloon resection in Asian patients are still insufficient.
In response, Professor Oh Il-young's research team followed 299 Korean patients (150 patients with onset atrial fibrillation and 149 patients with persistent atrial fibrillation) enrolled in the 『Cryo Global Registry" for two years and conducted a study to analyze the recurrence rate of atrial fibrillation, improvement of symptoms, improvement of quality of life, and risk factors for recurrence after cooling balloon resection.
As a result of the study, 71.9% of patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation and 49.3% of patients with persistent cardiac fibrillation remained stable without recurrence of atrial fibrillation for 2 years after cooling balloon resection. In particular, it was confirmed that symptoms due to atrial fibrillation decreased after the procedure, and the overall quality of life of patients was improved. Prior to the procedure, 75.5% of patients complained of symptoms such as heart palpitations, fatigue, and dizziness, but two years after the procedure, the proportion of patients with these symptoms decreased to 10.5%.
The research team suggested the period from the diagnosis of atrial fibrillation to the procedure and the size of the left atrium as factors affecting the effectiveness of cooling balloon resection. The longer the period from diagnosis of atrial fibrillation to cooling balloon resection, the higher the risk of atrial fibrillation recurrence, which is analyzed to be because the longer the atrial fibrillation lasts, the greater the risk of recurrence due to the deformation of the heart's structure.
In addition, it was confirmed that patients with larger left atrium have a higher risk of recurrence after the procedure. This is because the larger the diameter of the left atrium, the more unstable the electrical signal of the heart, which increases the risk of recurrence, so he stressed that more precise treatment plans are needed for patients with larger left atrium sizes.
Professor Oh Il-young "We expect the results of this study to help establish a standardized atrial fibrillation treatment policy not only in Korea but also in Asia."We will take the lead in developing customized treatments for patients with atrial fibrillation in the future to ensure that many patients receive better treatment."
Meanwhile, the results of this study were published in the international journal 『Korean Circulation Journal』 published by the Korean Heart Association.
Atrial fibrillation is a type of arrhythmia that causes irregular beats by generating abnormal electrical signals in various places within the atrium. It was short in the beginningIt appears as a 'raptive atrial fibrillation' that repeats the disappearance, but progresses to 'persistent atrial fibrillation' that does not disappear over time and lasts for a long time.
Cooling balloon resection, one of the ways to treat atrial fibrillation, is a procedure that blocks abnormal electrical signals that cause atrial fibrillation by blocking the entrance to the pulmonary vein connected to the atrium with a frozen balloon at temperatures below -89 degrees Celsius. Although the procedure time is relatively short and the incidence of complications is low, studies on the long-term effects of cooling balloon resection in Asian patients are still insufficient.
In response, Professor Oh Il-young's research team followed 299 Korean patients (150 patients with onset atrial fibrillation and 149 patients with persistent atrial fibrillation) enrolled in the 『Cryo Global Registry" for two years and conducted a study to analyze the recurrence rate of atrial fibrillation, improvement of symptoms, improvement of quality of life, and risk factors for recurrence after cooling balloon resection.
As a result of the study, 71.9% of patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation and 49.3% of patients with persistent cardiac fibrillation remained stable without recurrence of atrial fibrillation for 2 years after cooling balloon resection. In particular, it was confirmed that symptoms due to atrial fibrillation decreased after the procedure, and the overall quality of life of patients was improved. Prior to the procedure, 75.5% of patients complained of symptoms such as heart palpitations, fatigue, and dizziness, but two years after the procedure, the proportion of patients with these symptoms decreased to 10.5%.
The research team suggested the period from the diagnosis of atrial fibrillation to the procedure and the size of the left atrium as factors affecting the effectiveness of cooling balloon resection. The longer the period from diagnosis of atrial fibrillation to cooling balloon resection, the higher the risk of atrial fibrillation recurrence, which is analyzed to be because the longer the atrial fibrillation lasts, the greater the risk of recurrence due to the deformation of the heart's structure.
In addition, it was confirmed that patients with larger left atrium have a higher risk of recurrence after the procedure. This is because the larger the diameter of the left atrium, the more unstable the electrical signal of the heart, which increases the risk of recurrence, so he stressed that more precise treatment plans are needed for patients with larger left atrium sizes.
Professor Oh Il-young "We expect the results of this study to help establish a standardized atrial fibrillation treatment policy not only in Korea but also in Asia."We will take the lead in developing customized treatments for patients with atrial fibrillation in the future to ensure that many patients receive better treatment."
Meanwhile, the results of this study were published in the international journal 『Korean Circulation Journal』 published by the Korean Heart Association.
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