15 April, 2024

barnaclínic+ offers a new alternative for atrial fibrillation: electroporation

Until relatively recently, there were only two techniques for the treatment of atrial fibrillation: radiofrequency and cryoablation. A third alternative has recently been added to them, electroporation. The Hospital Clínic Barcelona, ​​an international reference in the diagnosis and treatment of arrhythmias, is one of the pioneers in the application of electroporation, being the first centre in Catalonia to incorporate this new technology. Thus, electroporation will now also be available at barnaclínic+, in the line followed by the centre of offering its patients the most advanced and cutting-edge procedures.

ATRIAL FIBRILLATION, THE MOST FREQUENT ARRHYTHMIA

We must not forget that atrial fibrillation is the most common arrhythmia in the general population and that its incidence increases with age. In people over 80 years of age, this pathology reaches a prevalence of over 10%. It is not a minor complication, since it has serious implications both in terms of symptoms, which can range from fatigue or difficulty breathing to chest pain, dizziness or fainting, and in its prognosis, which can cause cardiac arrest or a stroke.

For its treatment, the pulmonary veins are isolated, which are those that reach the left side of the heart and are the focus of these arrhythmias in most patients. It is a very effective treatment, achieving a long-term success rate of between 70 and 80%. Its main problem is that the procedures required for this are of a certain duration, which limits its expansion to more patients.

ELECTROPORATION, THE FASTEST TREATMENT OF ATRIAL FIBRILLATION

This is where electroporation has made an important change, since it allows procedures up to 30% faster. Furthermore, this technique, unlike radiofrequency or cryoablation, is more selective for cardiac cells, reducing the risk of complications. However, it cannot be applied to all patients either. Radiofrequency and cryoablation continue to be useful procedures, with certain advantages over electroporation, so it is important that specialists assess the pros and cons of each technique for the treatment of atrial fibrillation, and make the selection according to the characteristics of each specific patient.

Electroporation allows the treatment of atrial fibrillation in a procedure up to 30% faster and with a lower risk of complications than other interventions currently available

MORE AND MORE PATIENTS WITH ATRIAL FIBRILLATION TREATED WITH ABLATION AND ELECTROPORATION

The Clínic’s arrhythmias section, headed by Dr Ivo Roca, who is also a barnaclínic+ professional, has made a commitment to increase the number of atrial fibrillation ablations in recent years. Thus, we have gone from 150 procedures in 2021 to more than 270 in 2023. This has been made possible thanks to an optimisation of workflows and, above all, the incorporation of this electroporation technology.

In this way, since its introduction in the hospital in mid-2023, this technology has allowed dozens of patients to be treated, becoming the first hospital in Catalonia to reach 100 electroporation procedures to treat atrial fibrillation. All this accumulated experience will serve to further improve the results obtained with this new technique and thus offer more appropriate alternatives to each patient, thus optimising resources and significantly reducing the risk of complications.