Long-term outcomes of arrhythmia and distinct electrophysiological features in congenitally corrected transposition of the great arteries in an Asian cohort.

UNLABELLED: Congenitally corrected transposition of the great arteries (ccTGA) is associated with various types of arrhythmia, including supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) and complete atrioventricular block (cAVB). Our study aims to characterize the arrhythmia burden, associated risk factors, arrhythmia mechanisms, and the long-term follow-up results in patients with ccTGA in a large Asian cohort.

METHODS

We enrolled 104 patients (43 women and 61 men) diagnosed with ccTGA at our institution. The mean age at last follow-up was 20.8 years.

RESULTS

For 40 patients (38%) with tachyarrhythmia, paroxysmal SVT (PSVT) and atrial arrhythmia were observed in 17 (16%) and 27 (26%) patients, respectively, with 4 patients (4%) having both types of SVT. The 20-year and 30-year SVT-free survival rates were 68% and 54%, respectively. Seven patients (7%) developed cAVB: 2 (2%) developed spontaneously, and the other 5 (5%) was surgically complicated (surgical risk of cAVB: 7%, all associated with ventricular septal defect repair surgery). PSVT was mostly associated with accessory pathways (5/9) but also related to twin atrioventricular nodal reentry tachycardia (3/9) and atrioventricular nodal reentry tachycardia (1/9). Most of the accessory pathways were located at tricuspid valve (9/10). Catheter ablation successfully eliminated all PSVT substrates (10/10) and most of the atrial arrhythmia substrates (3/5), with low recurrence rate.

CONCLUSIONS

The arrhythmia burden in patients with ccTGA is high and increases over time. However, cAVB incidence was relatively low and kept stationary in this Asian cohort. The mechanisms of SVT are complicated and can be controlled through catheter ablation.