Catheter ablation of left posterior fascicular ventricular tachycardia in children with limited fluoroscopy exposure

Ventricular tachycardia ablation in children

INTRODUCTION

The ablation of ventricular tachycardia, including premature ventricular contractions, is an approved, albeit infrequent procedure in pediatric patients. Data are scarce regarding the outcomes of this procedure. The purpose of this study was to share a high-volume center experience and patient outcomes for catheter ablation of ventricular ectopy and ventricular tachycardia in pediatric population.

METHODS

Data were retrieved from the institutional data bank. Outcomes over time were evaluated, and procedural details were compared.

RESULTS

A total of 116 procedures were performed on 102 pediatric patients between July 2009 and May 2021 at the Rajaie Cardiovascular Medical and Research Center in Tehran, Iran. Ablation was not performed in 4 procedures (3.4%) due to high-risk substrates. Of the remaining 112 ablations performed, 99 (88.4%) were successful. However, one patient died due to a coronary complication. There were no significant differences observed in early ablation results based on patients' age, sex, cardiac anatomy, or ablation substrates (P > 0.05). Follow-up records were available for 80 procedures, and 13 (16.3%) of those experienced recurrence. During long-term follow-up, none of the variables mentioned above were statistically different between patients with or without arrhythmia recurrence.

CONCLUSION

The overall success rate of pediatric ventricular arrhythmia ablation is favorable. We found no significant predictor for the procedural success rate concerning acute and late outcomes. Larger multicenter studies are needed to elucidate the predictors and outcomes of the procedure.

The First Evaluation of Remote Magnetic Navigation-Guided Pediatric Ventricular Arrhythmia Ablation

Catheter ablation (CA) is an important treatment option for ventricular arrhythmias (VA) in pediatric cardiology. Currently, various CA techniques are available, including remote magnetic navigation (RMN)-guided radiofrequency (RF) ablation. However, no studies evaluate RMN-guided ablative therapy outcomes in children with VA yet. This study aimed to compare procedural and long-term outcomes between RMN-guided and manual (MAN)-guided VA ablation in children. This single-center, retrospective study included all CA procedures for VA performed in children with or without structural heart disease from 2008 until 2020. Two study groups were defined by CA technique: RMN or MAN. Primary outcome was recurrence of VA. Baseline clinical, procedural and safety data were also evaluated. This study included 22 patients, who underwent 30 procedures, with a median age of 15 (IQR 14-17; range 1-17) years and a mean weight of 57 ± 20 kg. In total, 14 procedures were performed using RMN and 16 using MAN (22 first and 8 redo procedures). Regarding first procedures, recurrence rates were significantly lower in RMN compared to MAN (20% versus 67%, P = 0.029), at a mean follow-up of 5.2 ± 3.0 years. Moreover, fluoroscopy dosages were significantly lower in RMN compared to MAN [20 (IQR 14-54) versus 48 (IQR 38-62) mGy, P = 0.043]. In total, 20 patients (91%) were free of VA following their final ablation procedure. This is the first study to investigate the use of RMN in pediatric VA ablation. RMN showed improved outcomes compared to MAN, resulting in lower VA recurrence and reduced fluoroscopy exposure.

Transcatheter radiofrequency ablation using near-zero fluoroscopy in children with fascicular ventricular tachycardia: a single-centre experience

OBJECTIVE

Fascicular tachycardia is a common form of sustained idiopathic left ventricular tachycardia. This study aimed to achieve successful results with catheter ablation procedures performed through three-dimensional electroanatomic mapping using near-zero fluoroscopy in fascicular tachycardia patients.

METHODS AND RESULTS

In this study, we included 33 consecutive children with fascicular tachycardia, for whom we performed a transcatheter radiofrequency ablation procedure using the EnSite® system. Activation mapping was performed in all patients during tachycardia, and the earliest presystolic purkinje potentials were the target site for radiofrequency lesions.

RESULTS

Twenty-five patients were male, and eight were female. The mean weight of the patients was 39.6 ± 10.4 kg, and the mean age was 13.6 ± 2.5 years. The mean procedure time was 121.3 ± 44.3 minutes. The mean follow-up period was 18.4 ± 6.5 months. No fluoroscopy was needed in 30 patients. The mean fluoroscopy time in the remaining patients was 166.6 ± 80 seconds. All of the patients had left posterior fascicular tachycardia except for one who had left anterior fascicular tachycardia. The acute success rate was perfect (100%). No patients developed left bundle branch block or complete atrioventricular block. Recurrence developed in one patient.

CONCLUSION

We suggest that radiofrequency ablations via an electroanatomic mapping system are quite safe and effective, with high success rates in paediatric patients with fascicular tachycardia. This method has the advantage of avoiding ionising radiation exposure for both the patient and operator, thus reducing the lifetime risk of malignancy in the paediatric population.