5. Limitations:
A blanking period of 90 days is utilized for post-AAFL ablation, similar to AF ablation, where the arrhythmia recurrences within the period are disregarded. This blanking interval is debatable for a reentrant arrhythmia, but the period was chosen for consistency with AF studies. Any interventions in this period, such as repeat procedures and AV-nodal ablation, are not considered.
Besides symptom-based recording, routine Holter monitoring at periodic intervals and snapshot ECGs were used as markers of recurrence. However, continuous recording with a loop recorder or implanted device such as a pacemaker may have detected a higher recurrence rate.
6. Conclusions:
The one-year RFS rate of 57.2% following AAFL ablation, even though 83.7% achieved acute termination during the procedure, signifies the extent of the substrate abnormalities.
Acknowledgments: None