Catheter ablation of repetitive ventricular tachycardia in patients with ischemic heart disease – our experience
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.6016/ZdravVestn.1395Keywords:
ventricular tachycardia, coronary artery disease, ischaemic cardiomyopathy, radiofrequency ablation, catheter ablation, clinical outcomeAbstract
Ventricular tachycardia (VT) poses a significant risk for sudden death and heart failure exacerbation in patients with ischemic heart disease. Catheter-based radiofrequency ablation is the last treatment option for patients with frequent VT recurrences despite antiarrhythmic drugs. The aim was to present our retrospective catheter ablation data in this group of patients.
The majority of 34 patients, who underwent percutaneous endocardial radiofrequency catheter ablation, were male, median age 67.5 years, who presented with electrical storm, had underlying cardiomyopathy after remote inferior wall myocardial infarction and preceding myocardial revascularization procedure, and had been implanted with cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD). Two ablation methods were used: linear ablation and/or scar homogenization. Acute ablation success (non-inducibility of any VT) was achieved in 59 % of procedures. VT could not be interrupted in 2 (6 %) patients. Pericardial tamponade that needed surgical intervention occurred in one procedure (2 %), and was related to inadvertent perforation of the right ventricular apex with a diagnostic catheter. Seven (20 %) patients died and additional 3 were lost from the median of 31 (6–151, rank) months of follow-up. No late VT recurrences were demonstrated in 20 (59 %) patients, and rare in 4 (12 %). Overall, the ablation procedure was successful in 71 % of patients.
Catheter ablation gave very good long-term clinical result in about two-thirds of our patients with ischaemic cardiomyopathy and frequent VT recurrences. Catheter ablation, preferably with scar homogenization approach, should be considered early to reduce the number of VT episodes and ICD discharges.
Downloads
References
Connolly SJ, Hallstrom AP, Cappato R, Schron EB, Kuck KH, Zipes DP, et al. Meta-analysis of the implantable cardioverter defibrillator secondary prevention trials. AVID, CASH and CIDS studies. Antiarrhythmics vs Implantable Defibrillator study. Cardiac Arrest Study Hamburg. Canadian Implantable Defibrillator Study. Eur Heart J. 2000;21(24):2071–8.
Poole JE, Johnson GW, Hellkamp AS, Anderson J, Callans DJ, Raitt MH, et al. Prognostic importance of defibrillator shocks in patients with heart failure. N Engl J Med. 2008;359(10):1009–17.
Connolly SJ, Dorian P, Roberts RS, Gent M, Bailin S, Fain ES, et al. Optimal Pharmacological Therapy in Cardioverter Defibrillator Patients I. Comparison of beta-blockers, amiodarone plus beta-blockers, or sotalol for prevention of shocks from implantable cardioverter defibrillators: the OPTIC Study: a randomized trial. J Am Med Assoc. 2006;295(2):165–71.
Frankel DS, Mountantonakis SE, Robinson MR, Zado ES, Callans DJ, Marchlinski FE. Ventricular tachycardia ablation remains treatment of last resort in structural heart disease: argument for earlier intervention. J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol. 2011;22(10):1123–1128.
Aliot EM, Stevenson WG, Almendral-Garrote JM, Bogun F, Calkins CH, Delacretaz E, et al. EHRA/HRS Expert Consensus on Catheter Ablation of Ventricular Arrhythmias. Heart Rhythm. 2009;(6):886-932.
Stevenson WG, Wilber DJ, Natale A, Jackman WM, Marchlinski FE, Talbert T, et al. Multicenter Thermocool VT Ablation Trial Investigators. Irrigated radiofrequency catheter ablation guided by electroanatomic mapping for recurrent ventricular tachycardia after myocardial infarction: the multicenter thermocool ventricular tachycardia ablation trial. Circulation. 2008;118(25):2773–82.
Delacrétaz E, Brenner R, Schaumann A, Eckardt L, Willems S, Pitschner HF, et al. VTACH Study Group. Catheter ablation of stable ventricular tachycardia before defibrillator implantation in patients with coronary heart disease (VTACH): an on-treatment analysis. J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol. 2013;24(5):525-9.
Soejima K, Stevenson WG, Maisel WH, Sapp JL, Epstein LM. Electrically unexcitable scar mapping based on pacing threshold for identification of the reentry circuit isthmus: feasibility for guiding ventricular tachycardia ablation. Circulation. 2002;106(13):1678–1683.
Morady F, Harvey M, Kalbfleisch SJ, el-Atassi R, Calkins H, Langberg JJ. Radiofrequency catheter ablation of ventricular tachycardia in patients with coronary artery disease. Circulation. 1993;87(2):363-72.
Della Bella P, De Ponti R, Uriarte JA, Tondo C, Klersy C, Carbucicchio C, et al. Catheter ablation and antiarrhythmic drugs for haemodynamically tolerated post-infarction ventricular tachycardia; long-term outcome in relation to acute electrophysiological findings. Eur Heart J. 2002;23(5):414-24.
Kautzner J, Cihák R, Peichl P, Vancura V, Bytesník J. Catheter ablation of ventricular tachycardia following myocardial infarction using three-dimensional electroanatomical mapping. Pacing Clin Electrophysiol. 2003;26(1/2):342-7.
Volkmer M, Ouyang F, Deger F, Ernst S, Goya M, Bänsch D, et al. Substrate mapping vs. tachycardia mapping using CARTO in patients with coronary artery disease and ventricular tachycardia: impact on outcome of catheter ablation. Europace. 2006;8(11):968-76.
Carbucicchio C, Santamaria M, Trevisi N, Maccabelli G, Giraldi F, Fassini G, et al. Catheter ablation for the treatment of electrical storm in patients with implantable cardioverter-defibrillators: short- and long-term outcomes in a prospective single-center study. Circulation. 2008;117(4):462-9.
Tanner H, Hindricks G, Volkmer M, Furniss S, Kühlkamp V, Lacroix D, et al. Catheter ablation of recurrent scar-related ventricular tachycardia using electroanatomical mapping and irrigated ablation technology: results of the prospective multicenter Euro-VT-study. J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol. 2010;21(1):47-53.
Dinov B, Fiedler L, Schönbauer R, Bollmann A, Rolf S, Piorkowski C, et al. Outcomes in catheter ablation of ventricular tachycardia in dilated nonischemic cardiomyopathy compared with ischemic cardiomyopathy: results from the Prospective Heart Centre of Leipzig VT (HELP-VT) Study. Circulation. 2014;129(7):728-36.
Kuck KH, Schaumann A, Eckardt L, Willems S, Ventura R, Delacrétaz E, et al. VTACH study group. Catheter ablation of stable ventricular tachycardia before defibrillator implantation in patients with coronary heart disease (VTACH): a multicentre randomised controlled trial. Lancet. 2010;375(9708):31-40.
Published
Issue
Section
License
The Author transfers to the Publisher (Slovenian Medical Association) all economic copyrights following form Article 22 of the Slovene Copyright and Related Rights Act (ZASP), including the right of reproduction, the right of distribution, the rental right, the right of public performance, the right of public transmission, the right of public communication by means of phonograms and videograms, the right of public presentation, the right of broadcasting, the right of rebroadcasting, the right of secondary broadcasting, the right of communication to the public, the right of transformation, the right of audiovisual adaptation and all other rights of the author according to ZASP.
The aforementioned rights are transferred non-exclusively, for an unlimited number of editions, for the term of the statutory
The Author can make use of his work himself or transfer subjective rights to others only after 3 months from date of first publishing in the journal Zdravniški vestnik/Slovenian Medical Journal.
The Publisher (Slovenian Medical Association) has the right to transfer the rights of acquired parties without explicit consent of the Author.
The Author consents that the Article be published under the Creative Commons BY-NC 4.0 (attribution-non-commercial) or comparable licence.
