Catheter ablation by pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) is established in patients suffering from drug-refractory symptomatic atrial fibrillation (AF). According to recent guidelines, it can also be offered to AF patients as a first-line treatment. The CASTLE-AF study randomized AF patients with severely impaired left ventricular (LV) function to catheter ablation or drug therapy. The patients in the ablation group experienced a significantly lower all-cause mortality and hospitalization rate compared to the conservatively managed group. This result is supported by the CAMERA-MRI trial. The benefit of AF ablation in heart failure was not reproducible in the large randomized CABANA trial. Due to a high cross-over rate, the results are vigorously being discussed and the consequences for clinical practice remain unclear. The DECAAF study described a positive correlation with left atrial fibrosis and the risk for recurrence following PVI. Whether those fibrotic areas should be targeted during the first ablation attempt is now part of the ongoing DECAAF-II trial. Its results might affect the preprocedural planning phase and future ablation strategies. Finally, new ablation techniques are being investigated. In this context, high-power short-duration ablation (HPSD) is of growing interest. In the QDOT-FAST trial, the procedure and fluoroscopy times could be significantly reduce using HPSD catheter technology. However, future studies are still required to evaluate the long-term performance of this novel ablation approach.
Keywords: Catheter ablation; Clinical study; Heart diseases; High-power short-duration ablation; Pulmonary vein isolation.