Avaliação da qualidade de vida em pacientes com fibrilação atrial submetidos à ablação por cateter

Objetivo: Determinar a qualidade de vida em 25 pacientes portadores de fibrilacao atrial, antes e apos aablacao por cateter. Metodos: Aplicacao de dois questionarios, sendo um generico (SF-36) para avaliar a qualidade de vida relacionada a saude, compreendendo oito dominios. Ooutro questionario aplicado foi especifico: Qualidade de Vida em Fibrilacao Atrial (QVFA), compreendendo sete componentes. Os questionarios foram aplicados em 25pacientes (20 do sexo masculino) portadores de fibrilacao atrial paroxistica, indicados para se submeterem a ablacao por cateter, no periodo de julho de 2004 a novembro de2005, e tres meses apos o procedimento. As variaveis foram comparadas, utilizando-se o teste de Willcoxon. Resultados: Os resultados mostraram uma melhora significativa em cinco dominios do questionario QVFA,com os seguintes escores: palpitacao (11,43 e pos 7,18), dispneia (6,68 e pos 3,08), tontura (5,08 e pos 2,64),medicacao (3,88 e pos 2,52) e total do escore (33,02 e pos 19,80). Nos resultados do questionario SF-36, observouse uma melhora significativa no dominio de capacidade funcional (64,06 e pos 77,29). Conclusoes: Pacientes com fibrilacao atrial obtiveramuma melhora na qualidade de vida relacionada a saude apos ablacao por cateter. Objective: To assess the quality of life in 25 patients with atrial fibrillation after catheter ablation. Methods: Two questionnaires were completed. Onewas the more general Short Form SF-36 Health Survey Questionnaire that assesses the quality of life througheight aspects, scored from 0 to 100, with higher scores reflecting a better quality of life. The other was the morespecific Quality of Life with Atrial Fibrillation (QVFA) questionnaire, with seven subscales. These questionnaireswere competed by 25 patients (twenty of them male) with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation recommended for catheterablation, and then repeated three months after the procedure, between July 2004 and November 2005. Thevariables were compared through the Willcoxon Test. Results: The findings showed significant improvementsfor five aspects covered by the QVFA questionnaire, with the following scores: palpitations (before: 11.43 / after: 7.18); dyspnea (before: 6.68 / after: 3.08); dizziness (before: 5.08 / after: 2.64); medication (before: 3.88 / after:2.52); and the total scores (before: 33.02 / after: 19.80). The findings of the SF-36 questionnaire showed asignificant improvement in their functional capacity (before: 64.06 / after: 77.29). Conclusions: Patients with atrial fibrillation presented abetter quality of life in terms of their health after catheter ablation. The QFVA questionnaire is more sensitive than the more general SF-36 questionnaire, in terms of reflecting differences in the quality of life of patients with atrial fibrillation.