Role of left atrial speckle tracking echocardiography in predicting persistent atrial fibrillation electrical cardioversion success and sinus rhythm maintenance at 6 months

• Published in: Advances in medical sciences 2014-03, Vol.59 (1), p.120-125
• Main Authors: Doruchowska, Anika, Wita, Krystian, Bochenek, Tomasz, Szydło, Krzysztof, Filipecki, Artur, Staroń, Adam, Wróbel, Wojciech, Krzych, Łukasz, Trusz-Gluza, Maria
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aged; Atrial Fibrillation - diagnostic imaging; Atrial Fibrillation - prevention & control; Cardioversion; Echocardiography; Echocardiography - methods; Electric Countershock - methods; Electrocardiography; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Heart Atria - diagnostic imaging; Heart Conduction System; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Prognosis; Recurrence; ROC Curve; Sinoatrial Node - physiology; Speckle tracking
• ISSN: 1896-1126; 1898-4002
• DOI: 10.1016/j.advms.2013.10.003

We assessed the value of left atrium speckle tracking imaging (STI) indices, and clinical and other echocardiographic parameters in persistent atrial fibrillation (AF) patients to predict the efficacy of electrical cardioversion (EC) and sinus rhythm (SR) maintenance at 6 months. Eighty persistent AF patients planned to receive EC, underwent echocardiography including STI. After 24h, patients with successful EC were examined to predict SR maintenance. After 6 months patients with no AF recurrence in electrocardiogram (ECG) underwent 7-day ECG to exclude silent AF. Every AF>1min was a recurrence. SR restored in 61 patients, 19 unsuccessful. Prior use of statins (68.8% vs. 42.1%, p=0.03) was the only factor, determined later by univariate analysis to be a significant EC success predictor (OR=1.09, CL±95% 1.001–1.019, p