Table 1.
Baseline Patient, Operator, and Procedural Characteristics
| Characteristic | Conventional Needle Group (n=36) | RF Needle Group (n=36) | P Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Patient demographic characteristics | |||
| Age, y | 61.1±11.7 | 59.9±11.3 | 0.668 |
| Male sex | 23 (63.9) | 25 (69.4) | 0.617 |
| Race | 0.392 | ||
| White | 33 (91.7) | 33 (91.7) | |
| Black | 1 (2.8) | 0 (0.0) | |
| Asian | 1 (2.8) | 0 (0.0) | |
| Other | 1 (2.8) | 3 (8.3) | |
| Body mass index, kg/m2 | 28.4±4.7 | 28.4±5.9 | 0.995 |
| Hypertension | 20 (55.6) | 20 (55.6) | 1.000 |
| Diabetes | 4 (11.1) | 5 (13.9) | 0.722 |
| Coronary artery disease | 4 (11.1) | 5 (13.9) | 0.722 |
| Congestive heart failure | 3 (8.3) | 3 (8.3) | 1.000 |
| Previous stroke or transient ischemic attack | 3 (8.3) | 2 (5.6) | 0.643 |
| Atrial fibrillation | 35 (97.2) | 35 (97.2) | 1.000 |
| Atrial fibrillation type | 0.563 | ||
| Paroxysmal | 27 (77.1) | 29 (82.9) | |
| Persistent | 7 (20.0) | 6 (17.1) | |
| Long‐standing persistent | 1 (2.9) | 0 (0.0) | |
| History of atrial flutter | 6 (16.7) | 9 (25.0) | 0.384 |
| History of atrial tachycardia | 1 (2.8) | 1 (2.8) | 1.000 |
| Wolff–Parkinson–White syndrome | 1 (2.8) | 1 (2.8) | 1.000 |
| Indication for transseptal puncture | 1.000 | ||
| Atrial fibrillation | 35 (97.2) | 35 (97.2) | |
| Accessory pathway | 1 (2.8) | 1 (2.8) | |
| Previous transseptal puncture | 10 (27.8) | 12 (33.3) | 0.609 |
| Left atrial size* | 0.844 | ||
| Normal | 8 (29.6) | 6 (25.0) | |
| Mildly enlarged | 5 (18.5) | 7 (29.2) | |
| Moderately enlarged | 8 (29.6) | 6 (25.0) | |
| Severely enlarged | 6 (22.2) | 5 (20.8) | |
| Operator‐related characteristics | |||
| Operator experience, days | |||
| Fellow‐in‐training experience | 395.2±169.4 | 433.3±165.4 | 0.337 |
| Attending physician experience | 3389.8±1377.3 | 3553.0±1458.3 | 0.627 |
| Procedural characteristics | |||
| Intracardiac echocardiography | 0.759 | ||
| Phased‐array ultrasound | 30 (83.3) | 29 (80.6) | |
| Radial‐view ultrasound | 6 (16.7) | 7 (19.4) | |
| Biplane fluoroscopy | 33 (91.7) | 31 (86.1) | 0.453 |
| Long sheath for transseptal needle | 0.555 | ||
| SL1 long sheath | 35 (97.2) | 34 (94.4) | |
| Agilis steerable long sheath | 1 (2.8) | 2 (5.6) | |
Values are reported as mean±SD or n (%). RF indicates radiofrequency; SD, standard deviation.
*
Proportions were calculated on the basis of patients with echocardiographic data available in each arm.