Impact of Anxiety on Cardiac Substrate Modification in Women With Atrial Fibrillation Undergoing Catheter Ablation

NCT ID: NCT02547584

Last Updated: 2019-09-10

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

UNKNOWN

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

152 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2015-09-30

Study Completion Date

2022-07-31

Brief Summary

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This pilot study aims to assess the impact of anxiety on the cardiac substrate remodeling in female patients with paroxysmal and persistent atrial fibrillation (AF).

Detailed Description

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Hypothesis: High level of anxiety promotes remodeling of cardiac substrate via persistent inflammation, resulting in an increase in the prevalence of left atrial scar and non-pulmonary vein (non-PV) triggers in women with AF.

Rationale: Anxiety is generally defined as a psycho-biological emotional state or reaction that consists of unpleasant feelings of tension, apprehension, nervousness, and worry, and activation of the autonomic nervous system. This disorder is typically more common in women than men. There is considerable evidence to suggest close interactions between anxiety and inflammation and inflammation and AF.

Earlier studies have documented strong association between anxiety and inflammation as shown by high levels of inflammatory biomarkers such as C-reactive protein (CRP), total white blood cell (TWBC) count, fibrinogen and interleukin-6 in patients with anxiety. Chronic inflammation results in structural remodeling of the atrial architecture such as fibrotic changes that supports genesis and perpetuation of AF. In cardiac fibrosis, myocytes coupled with fibroblasts can undergo early depolarization resulting in increased ectopic beats and repetitive firing leading to the origin of non-pulmonary vein (non-PV) drivers. Left atrial scar is another known consequence of cardiac fibrosis. Therefore, it is prudent to hypothesize that high level of anxiety for prolonged period results in structural remodeling of cardiac substrates evidenced by increased prevalence of left atrial scar and non-PV triggers in female patients with paroxysmal and persistent AF.

Scar and non-PV triggers are known independent predictors of arrhythmia recurrence in AF patients undergoing catheter ablation. Recurrences of AF, despite complete PV disconnection, strongly suggest an important possible role of these foci in serving as a source for the persistence of this arrhythmia. Altered conduction and barriers resulting from the atrial scar form the critical circuits for intra-atrial re-entry that promotes AF persistence.

Recent progress in technology and knowledge have provided better understanding and allowed the electrophysiologists to improve on the ablation procedure in order to make it more safe and effective. However, there are still scores of unanswered questions in this relatively young research domain, one of which is if anxiety impacts cardiac substrate remodeling that potentially influences ablation-outcome. Also, of note, anxiety affects how patients perceive their illness, particularly for women, and influence healthcare utilization and economic burden. Therefore, if the role of anxiety would be ascertained, timely intervention of the same would lead to improvement in the success rate of the ablation therapy in females that highly dominate this subset of AF population.

Study Design: This pilot study will prospectively enroll 152 consenting female patients undergoing catheter ablation for AF. Eligible patients will be enrolled after signing informed consent, approved by Institutional Review Board of the participating institution.

Conditions

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Atrial Fibrillation

Study Design

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Allocation Method

NON_RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Primary Study Purpose

TREATMENT

Blinding Strategy

SINGLE

Outcome Assessors

Study Groups

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Group 1: with baseline anxiety+catheter ablation

Baseline anxiety will be defined as; Cardiac Anxiety Questionnaire (CAQ) score \>2.14 Hospital Anxiety and Depression Questionnaire (HAD) \>7 State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI): State-anxiety score \>40

Group Type ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Catheter ablation

Intervention Type PROCEDURE

Pulmonary vein antrum isolation (PVAI) plus entire posterior wall plus coronary sinus plus left part of the septum. This intervention will be received by all as standard of care

Group 2: Without baseline anxiety + catheter ablation

Cardiac Anxiety Questionnaire (CAQ) score \<2.14 Hospital Anxiety and Depression Questionnaire (HAD) \<7 State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI): State-anxiety score \<40

Group Type ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Catheter ablation

Intervention Type PROCEDURE

Pulmonary vein antrum isolation (PVAI) plus entire posterior wall plus coronary sinus plus left part of the septum. This intervention will be received by all as standard of care

Interventions

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Catheter ablation

Pulmonary vein antrum isolation (PVAI) plus entire posterior wall plus coronary sinus plus left part of the septum. This intervention will be received by all as standard of care

Intervention Type PROCEDURE

Other Intervention Names

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RFCA

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

1. Age: ≥ 18 years
2. Sex: female
3. Undergoing catheter ablation for paroxysmal or persistent AF
4. Able and willing to provide written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria

1. Receiving behavioral therapy or medications for the anxiety disorder
2. On hormonal supplement
3. On long-term steroid or anti-inflammatory drugs
Minimum Eligible Age

18 Years

Maximum Eligible Age

80 Years

Eligible Sex

FEMALE

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sponsors

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Texas Cardiac Arrhythmia Research Foundation

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Andrea Natale

Executive Medical Director

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

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Mitra Mohanty, MD MS FHRS

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Texas Cardiac Arrhythmia Research Foundation

Locations

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Texas Cardiac Arrhythmia Institute, St. david's Medical Center

Austin, Texas, United States

Site Status RECRUITING

Countries

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United States

Central Contacts

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Mitra Mohanty, MD MS FHRS

Role: CONTACT

512-544-8198

Tamara Metz, RN

Role: CONTACT

512-544-8176

Other Identifiers

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TCAI_AWARE

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

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