The clinical outcomes of patients who developed typical atrial flutter on class 1C anti arrhythmic medications treated with hybrid approach.

INTRODUCTION

A common approach to patients, who developed atrial flutter secondary to treatment with class 1C anti-arrhythmic drugs for atrial fibrillation (AF) (1C flutter), is a hybrid approach: ablation of the Cavo-Tricuspid isthmus (CTI) and continuation 1C medical treatment to prevent recurrence of AF. We aim to explore the clinical outcome of patients treated in this approach.

METHODS AND RESULTS

Two hundred and four consecutive patients who underwent ablation for typical AFL at a tertiary medical center between 2010 and 2016 were enrolled and followed up. The clinical outcome of patient treated by the hybrid approach (treatment group; n = 67) was compared to patient without history of AF (control group; n = 137). The primary endpoint was time to occurrence of AF. Twenty-eight (41.8%) patients in treatment group had AF occurrence in 1 year, including 9 (13.4%) patients who needed to escalate anti-arrhythmic drug treatment to class III, and 11 (16.4%) patients who underwent AF ablation. In comparison, only 21 (15.3%) patients in control group had occurrence during the first year after ablation. The median time from ablations till AF occur was 106 ± 481 days in treatment group, and 403 ± 668 days in control group (P < .01).

CONCLUSIONS

There is a relatively high rate of AF recurrence in patients treated with the hybrid approach during the first year after CTI ablation. An alternative approach should be considered in this selected population.