Safety of catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation in patients with liver cirrhosis.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Atrial fibrillation is the most prevalent cardiac arrhythmia, and catheter ablation (CA) has emerged as a viable treatment option for selected patients. However, its safety profile in liver cirrhosis (LC) populations remains underexplored.

METHODS

This was an observational analysis of the National Inpatient Sample Database 2016-2020; we analyzed adult encounters undergoing CA for atrial fibrillation who had a concomitant diagnosis of LC. Using propensity scores, encounters were divided into two cohorts based on the presence or absence of LC and matched in a 1:1 fashion using LC as the dependent variable. In-hospital mortality and postprocedure total complications were compared using regression models.

RESULTS

93 830 procedures were identified for non-LC patients and 960 involving LC patients; after propensity score matching, each cohort included 910 hospitalizations. The mean age in the LC-matched cohort was 66.5 ± 9.1 years. In-hospital mortality did not differ between the groups (aOR = 1.01; 95% CI [0.06-16.1]; p = .99). However, the LC cohort exhibited higher odds of total complications (aOR = 1.98; 95% CI [1.42-2.75]; p < .001). Length of stay (LOS) was comparable, but total costs were higher in the LC cohort: LOS was 2 days (95% CI [1-3]) in the LC group versus 3 days (95% CI [1-4]) (p < .11) and LC: $202,000 (95% CI [$142 000-$261 000]) versus non-LC: $189 000, (95% CI [$153 000-$222 000]) (p < .0001).

CONCLUSION

In this national analysis of patients undergoing CA for AF, those with LC had similar in-hospital mortality, postprocedure complications, and LOS compared to noncirrhotic patients. Furthermore, longitudinal studies are needed to assess the safety profile of CA in this subpopulation.