Long-term outcomes of catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Abstract

BACKGROUND: In the past decade, catheter ablation has become an established therapy for symptomatic atrial fibrillation (AF). Until very recently, few data have been available to guide the clinical community on the outcomes of AF ablation at ≥3 years of follow-up. We aimed to systematically review the medical literature to evaluate the long-term outcomes of AF ablation. METHODS AND RESULTS: A structured electronic database search (PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane) of the scientific literature was performed for studies describing outcomes at ≥3 years after AF ablation, with a mean follow-up of ≥24 months after the index procedure. The following data were extracted: (1) single-procedur..