First clinical experience using a visualized sheath for atrial fibrillation ablation

Introduction Recently, a novel steerable sheath allowing its real‐time visualization within a 3D‐mapping system was introduced to facilitate atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation. Aim This study aimed to assess safety and efficacy of AF ablation using the visualized sheath and to compare its performance with a matched control group of patients who received ablation with conventional and non‐visualized sheaths. Methods The study included consecutive patients between 09/2019 and 02/2021 who underwent routine AF ablation using the visualized sheath. Patients were regularly followed‐up in our outpatient's clinic. Arrhythmia recurrence was defined as any atrial fibrillation (AF)/ atrial tachycardia (AT) episode lasting > 30 s after a blanking period of 3 months. Results A total number of 100 patients undergoing ablation using the visualized sheath were compared to a group of 99 matched patients. No major complications were observed. Total procedure duration (108 ± 22 min vs. 112 ± 12 min; p = 0.045), fluoroscopy time (7 ± 3 min vs. 10 ± 5 min; p