Impact of stable coronary artery disease on the efficacy of cryoballoon ablation for the atrial fibrillation

Abstract Background Cryoballoon ablation has become an effective strategy for the treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF) without coronary artery disease (CAD). AF is usually coupled with CAD. However, the impact of CAD on the outcome of cryoablation in AF patients remains unclear. The objective of our study was to investigate the impact of stable CAD on the efficacy of cryoballoon ablation for AF. Materials and Methods The data of 384 patients who underwent AF cryoablation were consecutively collected. Patients were classified into a CAD group and a non-CAD group. All patients were listed for a scheduled follow-up visit in the outpatient clinics to evaluate the AF recurrence at 1, 3, 6 and 12 months after cryoablation. Results Seventy-four patients (19.3%) suffered from stable CAD, and 31 (8.1%) of them underwent PCI before cryoablation. Cryoablation was performed in 1521 pulmonary veins and 99.1% of pulmonary vein isolation was achieved. Successful follow-up was obtained in 354 patients after a mean of 12 ± 6 months, in which 280 patients (79.1%) had maintained stable sinus rhythm, and 74 patients (20.9%) had AF recurrence. There was no significant difference in AF recurrence between patients with and without CAD (16.4% versus 22.0%). Furthermore, the presence, location and severity of CAD were not associated with AF recurrence after cryoablation while persistent AF, N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide and left atrial diameter served as independent predictors of AF recurrence. Conclusions Cryoballoon ablation is effective for the treatment of AF in stable CAD patients. The presence of CAD has no impact on the AF recurrence after cryoablation.