Abstract 15846: Ablation of Atrial Fibrillation Improves Left Ventricular Diastolic Function and Prevents HFpEF-Related Hospitalization in Super-Elderly Patients

IntroductionAtrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common cardiac arrhythmia and its prevalence increases with age. Patients with AF carry a risk for the development of heart failure (HF). Especially, HF with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) is the most common clinical entity of HF in the elderly. However, the impact of AF ablation on left ventricular diastolic function in super-elderly patients has not yet been fully elucidated.HypothesisAblation of AF in super-elderly patients can improve their diastolic function and prevent HFpEF-related hospitalization.MethodsWe investigated 60 consecutive patients at age of over 80-year-old (69.3% male, mean 83 ±4.0 years) undergoing ablation of AF between 2014 and 2018 at our institution. In addition to clinical data and conventional echocardiographic data collecting, left ventricular (LV) and left atrial (LA) functions were evaluated using 2D speckle tracking echocardiography (2D-STE) before and 1-year after ablation. In a subset of 13 patients, cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR) was also performed to investigate LV functional change. The incidences of HF hospitalization and cardiovascular-related adverse events were compared with age-, gender-, LV ejection fraction (LVEF)- matched population with persistent AF (Controls, n=40).ResultsIn patients undergoing AF ablation, LVEF, LV global longitudinal strain (LVGLS) and LA strain were significantly increased (56 ± 4.3 to 58 ± 6.1%, p