April 26th 2024
A meta-analysis of 12 trials suggests catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation reduces heart failure events in HFrEF patients but not in HFpEF.
November 30th 2023
Abbott Announces Regulatory Decisions for a Pair of Arrhythmia Devices
February 2nd 2023On February 2, Abbott announced their FlexAbility™ Ablation Catheter, Sensor Enabled had received an expanded approval from the US Food and Drug Administration and their TactiFlex™ Ablation Catheter, Sensor Enabled received a CE Mark.
Despite Advances, Room for Improvement in Anticoagulation Exists for Older Adults
November 21st 2022An analysis of data from Medicare beneficiaries receiving treatment over a decade-long period provides a snapshot of oral anticoagulation initiation and nonadherence among older patients with atrial fibrillation in the US.
Almost 1 in 3 High-Risk AFib Patients Not Receiving Anticoagulation
November 17th 2022Using data from 88 medical centers across the US, new data is providing clinicians with an overview of contemporary trends in DOAC and warfarin use in adult patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation at high risk for stroke over the past decade.
Apixaban Trumps Other DOACs in Comparative Analysis of More than 500k AFib Patients
November 1st 2022A comparative analysis leveraging EHR data from more than 500k new DOAC users from Europe and the US suggests apixaban use was associated with the lowest risk of gastrointestinal bleeding among agents within the class, with similar rates of thromboembolic events and mortality observed among the class.
Minority Patients with AFib Less Likely to Receive Oral Anticoagulation than White Counterparts
October 28th 2022An analysis of the GWTG-Atrial Fibrillation Registry data suggests Black patients with AFib were 25% less likely to receive a prescription for oral anticoagulation at discharge and 27% less likely to receive a DOAC than their non-Hispanic White counterparts.
BMI in Childhood Could Signal AFib Risk Later in Life among Men
October 21st 2022An analysis of data from linked national registries in Sweden provides clinicians with new insight into the impact of early life BMI on cardiovascular risk, particularly risk of atrial fibrillation, later in life among men.
FDA Expands WATCHMAN FLX Approval to Include DAPT Option
September 6th 2022Announced by Boston Scientific on September 6, the label for the WATCHMAN FLX LAAC device now includes a 45-day DAPT option as an alternative to the 45-day postprocedural OAC plus aspirin regimen for patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation.
Study Suggests Women More Likely to Develop AFib than Men When Accounting for Height and Weight
September 1st 2022Despite the notion that men were at greater risk than women for developing AFib, new research indicates women were at a 49% greater risk of developing AFib than their male counterparts of the same height and weight.
DECAAF II: MRI-Guided Ablation Not A "One-Size-Fits-All" Fix for Persistent AFib
June 23rd 2022Results of DECAAF II, an RCT assessing MRI-guided ablation plus PVI to PVI alone for persistent AFib, suggest the more aggressive approach did not result in a statistically significant difference in arrhythmia recurrence but was associated with increased occurrence of safety events, including stroke.
Rivaroxaban Bests Combination Therapy for Total Event, Mortality Risk in Stable CAD with AFib
June 16th 2022A secondary analysis of the AFIRE trial provides further detail on the reduction in event risk and mortality associated with rivaroxaban monotherapy compared to combination therapy in patients with atrial fibrillation and stable coronary artery disease.
Black Patients with AFib 25% Less Likely to Receive Oral Anticoagulant Therapy at Discharge
April 29th 2022A study from HRS 2022 suggests Black patients with AFib were 25% less likely to be on oral anticoagulants at hospital discharge compared to their White counterparts those discharged 18% less likely to receive DOACs than their White counterparts.
VITAL-AF: Universal Screening for AFib in Primary Care Could Prove Useful in Older Adults
March 4th 2022Data from the VITAL-AF trial indicate universal screening with single-lead ECGs among patients 65 years and older in primary care settings did not significantly increase in new atrial fibrillation diagnoses, but was more effective in patients aged 85 years or older.
Assisted Reproductive Technologies Could Increase Risk of Arrhythmia, Kidney Injury
February 22nd 2022An analysis of data from the National Inpatient Sample suggests pregnancies conceived by assisted reproductive technology carried a 1.7- and 2.5-fold increase in risk for arrhythmia and acute kidney injury compared to those conceived without ART.
Symptoms of Atrial Fibrillation More Likely to Go Unreported, Unrecognized in Diabetes
November 23rd 2021A recent analysis found patients with diabetes were about 26% less likely to notice symptoms of atrial fibrillation and more likely to experience more comorbidities than their counterparts without diabetes.
Fitbit Heart Study Provides Further Backing for Wearables in Detecting AFib
November 15th 2021Data from the Fitbit Heart study presented at AHA 2021 suggest a novel algorithm for detecting irregular heart rhythms had a positive predictive value of 98% for detecting atrial fibrillation in patients with undiagnosed atrial fibrillation.
Timing of Atrial Fibrillation Can Help Predict Stroke Risk
October 4th 2021Data from more than 800 patients with 120 days of continuous heart monitoring data and ischemic stroke provide insight into the timing of arrhythmic episodes and how it can help predict the risk of stroke in patients with CIEDs and atrial fibrillation.