3.1 Patient characteristics
We enrolled 633 AF patients who underwent a PVI from September 2014 to June 2018 in our hospital. The clinical characteristics of the patients in the LRAF and non-LRAF groups are shown in Table 1. The age, body surface area, ratio of hypertension, and diabetes mellitus did not differ significantly between the two groups. The ratio of females, chronic heart failure, and a history of a stroke were higher in the LRAF group than non-LRAF group (p=0.024, p=0.040, p=0.037, respectively). There was a significant difference in the CHADS2 VASC score between the two groups (p=0.023) due to the ratio of females. The ratio of PAF was higher in the LRAF group than non-LRAF group (p<0.001). Plasma brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) level was significantly higher in LRAF group than in non-LRAF group (195.2 ± 217.5 pg/ml vs 144.7 ± 169.3 pg/ml, p=0.003). In the echocardiographic parameter, left ventricular end-diastolic diameter (LVDd), left ventricular end-systolic diameter (LVDs), and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) did not differ significantly between the two groups. The mean left atrium diameter (LAD) was 45.8 ± 5.27 mm and 44.1 ± 6.16 mm in the LRAF and non-LRAF groups, respectively (p=0.003). The ratio of severe mitral regurgitation (MR) and tricuspid regurgitation (TR) did not differ between the two groups.