Study Population
This study included 28 consecutive patients who underwent PVI with
radiofrequency catheter ablation (RFCA) for paroxysmal or persistent AF
at our institution. Patients with any of the following were excluded
from the present study: (1) unsuccessful PVI; (2) no intrinsic atrial
beat from the sinus node after PVI; and (3) no SVC sleeve.
We discontinued antiarrhythmic drugs for at least five half-lives prior
to the ablation procedure to the extent that they had no adverse
clinical effects, anticoagulant agents were administered at least three
weeks prior to the ablation procedure, and the absence of a thrombus in
the LA was confirmed by transoesophageal echocardiography. Verbal and
written informed consent for this study was obtained from all patients
prior to the procedure. The study protocol, including data collection
and record keeping, was approved by the Institutional Review Board of
the University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Japan (approval
number: UOEHCRB20-035) 11.