BACKGROUND: A mild increase in left atrial (LA) size predicts arrhythmia onset and adverse events in patients with lone paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (LPAF). However, the role of LA size as a predictor of LPAF recurrences is still controversial. OBJECTIVE: The potential role of LA size in affecting the frequency of recurrent episodes in patients with LPAF was investigated. METHODS: Fifty-one patients who were admitted for a first episode of LPAF and presenting with one recurrence (group A, n=20), two or three recurrences (group B, n=18), or four or more recurrences (group C, n=13) during an average follow-up period of two years were retrospectively selected. The M-mode LA anteroposterior diameter (LAAPd) was used as an echocardiographic surrogate of LA size. RESULTS: At baseline, LA size was normal or borderline in the control group, group A and group B, but significantly increased in group C. At two years' follow-up, a significant further LA enlargement from baseline was observed in group B (LAAPd 40+/-1.1 mm versus 40.7+/-1.2 mm, P<0.01) and in group C (LAAPd 41.4+/-1.6 mm versus 42.7+/-1.7 mm, P<0.001), while LA size remained substantially unchanged in the control group and in group A. CONCLUSIONS: Observations confirmed the association of increased LA size and LPAF onset, and provide the first evidence for a potential role of LA progressive enlargement as a predictor of arrhythmic recurrences.
BACKGROUND: A mild increase in left atrial (LA) size predicts arrhythmia onset and adverse events in patients with lone paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (LPAF). However, the role of LA size as a predictor of LPAF recurrences is still controversial. OBJECTIVE: The potential role of LA size in affecting the frequency of recurrent episodes in patients with LPAF was investigated. METHODS: Fifty-one patients who were admitted for a first episode of LPAF and presenting with one recurrence (group A, n=20), two or three recurrences (group B, n=18), or four or more recurrences (group C, n=13) during an average follow-up period of two years were retrospectively selected. The M-mode LA anteroposterior diameter (LAAPd) was used as an echocardiographic surrogate of LA size. RESULTS: At baseline, LA size was normal or borderline in the control group, group A and group B, but significantly increased in group C. At two years' follow-up, a significant further LA enlargement from baseline was observed in group B (LAAPd 40+/-1.1 mm versus 40.7+/-1.2 mm, P<0.01) and in group C (LAAPd 41.4+/-1.6 mm versus 42.7+/-1.7 mm, P<0.001), while LA size remained substantially unchanged in the control group and in group A. CONCLUSIONS: Observations confirmed the association of increased LA size and LPAF onset, and provide the first evidence for a potential role of LA progressive enlargement as a predictor of arrhythmic recurrences.
Authors: V Fuster; L E Rydén; R W Asinger; D S Cannom; H J Crijns; R L Frye; J L Halperin; G N Kay; W W Klein; S Lévy; R L McNamara; E N Prystowsky; L S Wann; D G Wyse; R J Gibbons; E M Antman; J S Alpert; D P Faxon; V Fuster; G Gregoratos; L F Hiratzka; A K Jacobs; R O Russell; S C Smith; W W Klein; A Alonso-Garcia; C Blomström-Lundqvist; G de Backer; M Flather; J Hradec; A Oto; A Parkhomenko; S Silber; A Torbicki Journal: Circulation Date: 2001-10-23 Impact factor: 29.690
Authors: S Adam Strickberger; John Ip; Sanjeev Saksena; Ken Curry; Tristram D Bahnson; Paul D Ziegler Journal: Heart Rhythm Date: 2005-02 Impact factor: 6.343
Authors: Carsten W Israel; Gerian Grönefeld; Joachim R Ehrlich; Yi-Gang Li; Stefan H Hohnloser Journal: J Am Coll Cardiol Date: 2004-01-07 Impact factor: 24.094