Study population
Patient data in this study were obtained from the Chinese Atrial
Fibrillation Registry (CARF), which is a prospective, multicenter,
ongoing registry study.7 In CARF, consecutive patients
referring to Beijing Anzhen Hospital for catheter ablation of AF were
retrospectively enrolled in this study if meeting all the inclusion
criteria: (1) ageā„18 years old; (2) AF (confirmed by 12-lead ECG or
24-hour Holter monitoring); (3) CLBBB. Exclusion criteria include: (1)
valvular AF; (2) hypertrophic cardiomyopathy; (3) a history of catheter
or surgery ablation of AF; (4) other wide QRS morphologies (right bundle
branch block, ventricular pacing, unclassified intraventricular
conduction disturbances). A total of 11,752 patients who underwent
catheter ablation of AF from 2011 to 2020 were screened. Forty-two cases
of AF combined with CLBBB were enrolled as CLBBB group. After propensity
score matching in a 1:4 ratio, 168 AF patients without CLBBB were
enrolled in the study as Non-CLBBB group.
CLBBB was defined according to the American Heart Association/American
College of Cardiology Foundation/Heart Rhythm Society recommendations:
native QRS duration >120 ms; broad R waves in leads I, aVL,
V5, or V6; absent q waves in leads I, V5, and V6; R peak time
> 60 ms in leads V5 and V6 but normal in leads V1, V2, and
V3, when small initial r waves can be discerned in the above
leads.8 This study was approved by the ethics
committee.