Prevalence and outcome of early recurrence of atrial tachyarrhythmias in the Cryoballoon vs Irrigated Radiofrequency Catheter Ablation (CIRCA-DOSE) study

Background: Early recurrence of atrial tachyarrhythmia (ERAT) is common after pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) and has been associated with an increased risk of late atrial fibrillation (AF) recurrence. Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence and outcomes of patients experiencing ERAT after PVI using advanced-generation ablation technologies. Methods: This is a prespecified substudy of the CIRCA-DOSE (Cryoballoon vs Irrigated Radiofrequency Catheter Ablation: Double-Short vs Standard Exposure Duration) trial, a prospective, randomized, multicenter study comparing PVI with contact force–guided radiofrequency ablation to secondary-generation cryoballoon ablation for paroxysmal AF. All study patients received an implantable cardiac monitor to allow continuous rhythm monitoring. ERAT was defined as any recurrent atrial tachyarrhythmia within the first 90 days after AF ablation. Results: ERAT occurred in 61% of the 346 patients at a median of 12 days (range 1–90 days) after ablation. ERAF was a significant predictor of late recurrence (60.1% with ER vs 25.9% without ER; P <.001) and symptomatic atrial tachyarrhythmia (31.6% with ERAF vs 6.7% without ERAF; P <.001). Receiver operating curve analyses revealed a strong correlation between ERAT timing and burden and late recurrence. Multivariate analysis identified ER timing (hazard ratio [HR] 2.90; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.41–5.95; P =.004) and burden (HR 1.05 per 1% ER burden; 95% CI 1.04–1.07; P <.001) as strong independent predictors of late recurrence. Incidence rate, timing, burden, and prognostic significance of ER did not differ between the study groups. Conclusion: ERAT remains common after PVI despite use of advanced-generation ablation technologies. Early AF recurrence beyond 3 weeks after ablation is associated with increased risk of late recurrence.