Retrospective Study
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2015. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Hypertens. May 23, 2015; 5(2): 98-103
Published online May 23, 2015. doi: 10.5494/wjh.v5.i2.98
Catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation in a subset of patients with concomitant hypertension
Tushar Sharma, Benjamin J Scherlag, Hiroshi Nakagawa, Warren M Jackman, Ralph Lazzara, Sunny S Po
Tushar Sharma, Benjamin J Scherlag, Hiroshi Nakagawa, Warren M Jackman, Ralph Lazzara, Sunny S Po, Heart Rhythm Institute at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, United States
Author contributions: All authors contributed to this manuscript.
Supported by The Heart Rhythm Institute at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center (SSP) and the Helen; and Wil Webster Arrhythmia Research Fund of the University of Oklahoma Foundation (BJS).
Ethics approval: This is a retrospective study which does not require IRB evaluation. See informed consent below.
Informed consent: All patient provided informed consent prior to the catheter ablation procedure for the treatment of atrial fibrillation. Included in that consent was the collection and publication of follow-up data.
Conflict-of-interest: Tushar Sharma, Benjamin J Scherlag, Ralph Lazzara and Sunny S Po have no conflicts to disclose; Hiroshi Nakagawa: Research Grant by Biosense Webster, Inc., St. Jude Medical AF Division, EndoSense SA and Boston Scientific; Warren M Jackman is Consultant of Biosense Webster, EndoSense SA, Rhythmia Medical, ACT, VyTronUS, CyberHeart and Cardiofocus.
Data sharing: None.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Correspondence to: Benjamin J Scherlag, PhD, Heart Rhythm Institute at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, 1200 Everett Drive (6E103), Oklahoma City, OK 73104, United States. benjamin-scherlag@ouhsc.edu
Received: September 30, 2014
Peer-review started: October 5, 2014
First decision: December 12, 2014
Revised: January 31, 2015
Accepted: February 10, 2015
Article in press: February 12, 2015
Published online: May 23, 2015
Core Tip

Core tip: A retrospective study of 119 patient with atrial fibrillation (AF) and hypertension (HTN) underwent catheter ablation consisting of pulmonary vein isolation and local cardiac autonomic denervation. After 1 year 33 were in sinus rhythm and fell into 2 categories based on significant differences in left atrial dimensions (LADs). Although similarly medicated, Group I (LADs ≤ 4 cm) had a significant decrease in blood pressure compared to Group 2, LAD > 4 cm. We conclude that HTN in Group 1 was neurogenic and ameliorated by neural ablation; whereas HTN in Group 2, manifested arterial vasoconstriction as the mechanism for HTN.