Texas Cardiac Arrhythmia Research Foundation
Earlier studies have shown a dose-dependent relationship between alcohol intake and incident atrial fibrillation (AF) as well as a causal link with several risk factors for AF such as hypertension, obesity and sleep apnea. However, the effect of drinking (alcohol) on post-ablation outcome such as arrhythmia recurrence, quality of life (QoL) and cognitive function in AF patients is unclear. Therefore, we aim to find the answer for a very frequently asked question, "is it safe to continue drinking alcohol (at the pre-ablation level) following catheter ablation OR should the intake be reduced for better outcome?", in this randomized trial.
1. BACKGROUND Earlier studies have not only reported alcohol-abstinence to be associated with lower recurrence of AF in patients receiving non-ablative antiarrhythmic therapy, but also unfavorable outcome among regular drinkers (high frequency and quantity) compared to non-drinkers undergoing AF ablation (1-3). In a meta-analysis of 14 studies, where the effect measures for AF associated with highest vs lowest alcohol intake were pooled for analysis, not consuming alcohol was observed to be the most favorable in terms of AF risk reduction (4). Larsson et al reported alcohol drinking, even in m…
Inclusion Criteria: * AF patients that regularly consume \>5 alcoholic drink (\*12 g of pure alcohol/drink)/week * Paroxysmal or persistent AF * First catheter ablation History of alcohol-induced arrhythmia * Willing to sign the written informed consent Exclusion Criteria: * Binge drinkers (alcohol dependence) * Non-drinkers * LVEF \<35% * Psychiatric conditions * MoCA score ≤ 17 on Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) * Patients with established dementia * Medically unstable patients (acute/unstable or poorly controlled problems that would demand focused, relatively urgent or emergent medi…
Participants will be asked to completely abstain from drinking or consume 2 or less drinks per week for 8 months following catheter ablation
Arctuva estimate
Verify or correct the compensation shown for this listing.