Table 2: Clinical Studies Included in this Review.
| Authors | PFA System | Study Design | Patients, n | Oesophagus Assessment | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reddy et al. 2020[20] | Pentaspline | Prospective two-centre study | 25 LAPW ablation in all patients |
Clinical follow-up, OGD 3 (IQR 1–5) days post ablation in 21 patients (84%) | No oesophageal complications |
| Reddy et al. 2020[21] | Lattice-tip catheter | Prospective multicentre study | 76 (40 RFA/PFA, 36 PFA/PFA) LAPW ablation in 8 patients (11%) | Temperature monitoring, clinical follow-up, OGD in 60 patients (79%) after 1.6 ± 1.1 days | No clinical symptoms, low-level oesophageal heating <39°C during PFA on the posterior LA wall No oesophageal injury in the PFA/ PFA cases (0 of 24; 0%), minor mucosal thermal injury in 2 of 36 (5.6%) RFA/PFA cases |
| Cochet et al. 2021[4] | Pentaspline | Prospective single-centre study | 41 No LAPW ablation |
Clinical follow-up, MRI acutely (<3 h) and 3 months after thermal ablation and PFA | 43% oesophageal LGE after thermal ablation, none after PFA Resolution after 3 months, no clinical complications |
| Reddy et al. 2021[19] | Pentaspline | Prospective two-centre studies | 121 No LAPW ablation |
Clinical follow-up, OGD after 4.9 ± 1.9 days post-procedure in 38 patients (31%), MRI in 18 patients (15%) | No oesophageal complications |
| Schmidt et al. 2022[22] | Pentaspline | All-comer, single-centre study | 191 No LAPW ablation |
Clinical follow-up, temperature monitoring, OGD 1 day post ablation in 52 patients (27%) | No oesophageal complications |
| Duytschaever et al. 2023[23] | Variable-loop circular catheter | Prospective multicentre study | 226 Wave I: 40 (18%) Wave II: 186 (82%) No LAPW ablation |
Wave I: OGD ≤72 h post ablation Wave II: Clinical follow-up only | No oesophageal complications |
| MANIFEST-PF-registry Ekanem et al. 2022[24] Turagam et al. 2023[25] | Pentaspline | Retrospective, multicentre registry | 1,758 1,568 LAPW ablation in 173/1,568 (11%) |
Clinical follow-up only | No oesophageal complications |
IQR = interquartile range; LA = left atrium; LAPW = left atrial posterior wall; LGE = late gadolinium enhancement; OGD = oesophago-gastro-duodenoscopy; PFA = pulsed field ablation; PVI = pulmonary vein isolation; RFA = radiofrequency ablation.