Table 1.
Baseline patient characteristics (ITT population)
| Characteristic a | RF ablation (n = 128) | AAD (n = 127) | Total (N = 255) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age, mean ± SD (years) | 67.8 ± 4.8 | 67.6 ± 4.6 | 67.7 ± 4.7 |
| Male sex | 54 (42.2) | 53 (41.7) | 107 (42.0) |
| Months since first experience of AF, median (range) | 51.2 (19–625) | 49.8 (25–366) | 50.3 (19–625) |
| Number of AF/AT episodes during prior 6 months, median (range) | 6.5 (2–180) | 6.0 (0–180) | 6.0 (0–180) |
| Lone AF | 38 (29.7) | 39 (30.7) | 77 (30.2) |
| HATCH score,b mean ± SD | 1.5 ± 0.9 | 1.7 ± 0.9 | 1.6 ± 0.9 |
| Congestive heart failure | 24 (18.8) | 27 (21.3) | 51 (20.0) |
| Hypertension | 120 (93.8) | 123 (96.9) | 243 (95.3) |
| Cardiomyopathyc | 6 (4.7) | 2 (1.6) | 8 (3.1) |
| Left ventricular hypertrophy | 26 (20.3) | 23 (18.1) | 49 (19.2) |
| Atrial flutter | 15 (11.7) | 10 (7.9) | 25 (9.8) |
| Diabetes | 13 (10.2) | 14 (11.0) | 27 (10.6) |
| Hyperlipidaemia/dyslipidaemia | 67 (52.3) | 67 (52.8) | 134 (52.5) |
| Renal insufficiency | 3 (2.3) | 4 (3.1) | 7 (2.7) |
| Transient ischaemic attack/stroke | 12 (9.4) | 8 (6.3) | 20 (7.8) |
| AAD class I/III at baseline | 61 (47.7) | 69 (54.3) | 130 (51.0) |
| Left ventricular ejection fraction, mean ± SD (%) | 61.8 ± 5.8 | 62.3 ± 5.2 | 62.0 ± 5.5 |
| Left atrial diameter, mean ± SD (mm) | 42.1 ± 6.1 | 43.4 ± 5.6 | 42.7 ± 5.9 |
AAD, antiarrhythmic drug; AF, atrial fibrillation; AT, atrial tachycardia; ITT, intent-to-treat; RF, radiofrequency; SD, standard deviation.
a
Data are number of patients (%) unless otherwise specified.
b
HATCH score was calculated as: hypertension = 1 point, age >75 years = 1 point, transient ischaemic attack or stroke = 2 points, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease = 1 point, and heart failure = 2 points.
c
Includes ischaemic, non-ischaemic dilated, and hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy.