Same-day discharge (SDD) is feasible after pulmonary vein isolation (PVI). We aim to compare prospectively cryoballoon (CRYO) vs. radiofrequency (RF) ablation in a systematic SDD programme. We prospectively analysed the 617 scheduled PVI performed consecutively at our institution (n = 377 CRYO, n = 240 RF) from 1 April 2019 to 31 December 2022 within a systematic programme of SDD. The feasibility of SDD, the 10-day incidence of urgent/unplanned medical care after discharge (UUC-10), and the cost per procedure due to hospital resource use were studied. The 100 procedures performed during the previous year, in which patients were systematically hospitalized, were used as a control group. Same-day discharge was achieved in 585/617 (95%) procedures, with a significant trend towards a higher monthly SDD rate from 2019 to 2022 (P = 0.03). The frequency of SDD was similar in CRYO (356/377; 94%) vs. RF (229/240; 95%). After SDD, the UUC-10 was 66/585 (11.3%), being similar for CRYO (41/356; 11.5%) and RF (25/229; 10.9%); P = 0.8 (log-rank test). Of these, 10 patients were re-hospitalized, with an identical rate in CRYO-treated (6/356; 1.7%) and RF-treated (4/229; 1.7%) patients and owing to similar causes (4 haematomas, 4 pericarditis, and 2 symptomatic sinus node dysfunction). Same-day discharge was associated with an average savings per procedure of 63% (P < 0.001), but no differences were found between the CRYO and RF (P = 0.8). In a systematic SDD programme, feasibility (95%, increasing over time), safety (11% UUC-10, 1.7% re-hospitalizations), and savings (63% per procedure) were similar for CRYO and RF ablation procedures. Clinical and economic outcomes of a systematic same-day discharge strategy after atrial fibrillation ablation.
To determine, in a non-selected population of 282 implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) patients with left ventricular dysfunction, the influence of the dose of beta-blockers on antitachycardia pacing (ATP) effectiveness and on the incidence of shock due to monomorphic ventricular tachycardias (VT). We followed 282 ICD patients along 26 ± 19 months. Antitachycardia pacing and shock programming were standardized. We determined the indexed dose equivalent of beta-blockers (IDE-BB), using metoprolol as a reference, at each VT presentation. The median of IDE-BB was 55 mg/m 2 /day. We analysed 846 VT occurred in 100 patients. The ATP success rate was 84%. Upon classification of the events into three groups (IDE-BB = 0, IDE-BB < 55, and IDE-BB ≥ 55), the frequency of effective ATP increased with the IDE-BB: 75 vs. 83 vs. 92% ( P < 0.001). According to logistic regression, IDE-BB remained as an independent predictor of effective ATP ( P < 0.001) and VT-related shock ( P = 0.001). Both the mean ATP effectiveness per patient (67 vs. 80 vs. 91%, P = 0.007) and the mean survival time free of VT-related shock (583 vs. 847 vs. 1158 days, P = 0.019, log-rank test) increased linearly with the dose of beta-blockers. Beta-blockers increase the effectiveness of ATP through a dose-dependent effect. As a result, they reduce the incidence of shocks due to VT.
1 November 2016 in The American Journal of Cardiology