Active clinical trials for "Atrial Fibrillation"

The purpose of the study is to determine the rate of diffusion weighted (DW)-MRI cerebral lesions following a Pulmonary Vein Ablation Catheter (PVAC) ablation procedure performed using best practices, including optimized procedural techniques and anti-coagulation therapy.

Rationale: The narrow therapeutic range and wide inter-patient variability in dose requirement make anticoagulation response to coumarin derivatives unpredictable. As a result, patients require frequent monitoring to avert adverse effects and maintain therapeutic efficacy. Polymorphisms in cytochrome P450 2C9 (CYP2C9) and vitamin K epoxide reductase complex 1 (VKORC1) jointly account for about 40% of the inter-individual variability in dose requirements. To date, several pharmacogenetic guided dosing algorithms for coumarin derivatives, predominately for warfarin, have been developed. However, the potential benefit of these dosing algorithms in terms of their safety and clinical utility has not been adequately investigated in randomised settings. Objective: To determine whether a dosing algorithm containing genetic information increases the time within therapeutic INR range during anticoagulation therapy with each of warfarin, acenocoumarol and phenprocoumon compared to a dosing regimen that does not contain this information. Secondary outcomes of the study include cost effectiveness, number of thromboembolic and bleeding events, time to reach stable dose and number of supratherapeutic INR peaks.

The primary aim of this proposal is to determine the effectiveness of a decision support tool on improving the process of shared decision-making for treatment on nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) compared to receipt of usual care.

Atrial fibrillation is common and increases the risk of clotting especially in patients with multiple clotting risk factors. Patients treated with warfarin, an oral anti-coagulant, require frequent lab monitoring and dose adjustments and are managed in pharmacy staffed anti-coagulation clinics that routinely contact them to remind them about blood draws, re-enforce medication adherence, and adjust dosing based on labs. Dabigatran, a newly approved medication that may be better for some with atrial fibrillation to lower risk of stroke and clotting, has been found to have fewer drug problems and eliminates lab monitoring need. Following instructions for taking dabigatran is important because it is a twice daily medication requiring monthly refills. Rivaroxaban is a once daily, newly approved Factor Xa inhibitor oral medication, prescribed to reduce risk of stroke and systemic embolism among patients with atrial fibrillation. Apixaban is a twice daily, FDA approved Factor Xa inhibitor oral anticoagulant, prescribed to reduce the risk of stroke and blood clots among patients with atrial fibrillation. In a double-blind RCT, apixaban was found to be superior to warfarin in reducing stroke, systemic embolism, and death. Patients on dabigatran, rivaroxaban, and apixaban will not be followed in anti-coagulation clinics, therefore will not benefit from the support provided by these clinics. It's anticipated many patients will be switched to dabigatran, rivaroxaban, or apixaban following recent publication of criteria for dabigatran use from the VA National Pharmacy Benefits Management Program, providing an opportune time to conduct the proposed adherence study. We will conduct qualitative interviews with patients(n~30) and pharmacists(n~20) to understand barriers/facilitators to oral anticoagulant adherence. Informed by the findings, we will develop and pilot test a multi faceted intervention to improve adherence among patients recently started on dabigatran/rivaroxaban/apixaban. Specific study aims: Conduct interviews with a sample of patients (n=30) recently started on dabigatran for atrial fibrillation to determine why patients do or don't take medications Conduct interviews with pharmacists (n=20) in anti-coagulation clinics in order to understand their opinions why patients do or don't take medications Informed by interviews, develop and test an intervention targeting patients/pharmacists to improve adherence to dabigatran/rivaroxaban/apixaban

Atrial fibrillation (AF) and congestive heart failure (CHF) are two epidemics that share several physiopathological links. CHF patients present a significantly increased risk of developing AF and the related detrimental hemodynamic effects are even more relevant than in patients without CHF. Within CHF patients rate control is the most widely used strategy to manage AF, having proved non-inferior to rhythm control strategies. However, by this strategy, the hemodynamic effects of AF persist, not contrasting the natural evolution towards progressive left ventricular (LV) function, cardiac output , and symptoms worsening. Rhythm control strategy, instead, has shown, in the general population, advantages over rate control concerning survival, quality of life and thromboembolic events. The main limitation is that antiarrhythmic therapy used to achieve this goal has several side effects, and that transcatheter AF ablation has been assessed only in modest sample size studies. Available literature focusing on a direct comparison between two specific management strategies in patients with CHF and AF is limited to a small randomized study comparing pulmonary veins isolation to AV node ablation and biventricular PM implantation (PABA-CHF study). Additional indirect evidences may derive from meta-analyses of observational studies. The investigators therefore designed this multicenter, randomized controlled trial aiming to assess if, in recently diagnosed (less than 6 months) and optimally treated CHF patients with impaired LV function, AF catheter ablation is effective in improving LV function and clinical functional class, potentially driving to a reduction of device implantations (ICD/CRTs).

It's a multi-center, prospective, randomized, controlled clinical trial of cryoballoon versus radiofrequency ablation for paroxysmal atrial fibrillation.

The aim of the study is to evaluate the impact of cryoablation of atrial fibrillation in patients with severe chronic heart failure (CHF) on long term outcome of CHF and efficacy (endurance) of the procedure itself. The study hypothesis is that cryoablation in eligible patients with CHF and ICD/CRT (implantable cardioverter defibrillator / cardiac resynchronization therapy) implants reduce the number of recurrent CHF hospitalizations, mortality, need for mechanical support of LV (left ventricle) and heart transplant (primary endpoint) at 1 year observation in comparison to traditional (pharmacological) treatment..

In patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) complicated with coronary artery disease (CAD), antiplatelet drugs are commonly used for the prevention of recurrence of stent thrombosis and cardiovascular events in combination with anticoagulant drugs. Based on the observations that the incidence of hemorrhagic complications increased when an antiplatelet drug was administered in combination with vitamin K antagonist (VKA), the guidelines for antithrombotic therapy after PCI in the US and EU recommend that DAPT (dual anti-platelets therapy) should be used in AF-complicated CAD patients for as short a time as possible following single anti-platelet and VKA, and that monotherapy with VKA should be started from one year after PCI. In 2013 the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA) published the guidelines for the use of NOACs in NVAF patients, which state that NOACs may have advantage to VKAs in terms of anti-thrombotic effects in NVAF patients undergoing PCI. However, no clinical evidence has ever been generated to reveal the efficacy and safety of mono-drug therapy with a NOACs in stable CAD patients one year or more after PCI. AFIRE study is planned to evaluate the efficacy and safety of mono-drug therapy with a rivaroxaban in stable CAD patients. Among NOACs, rivaroxaban was chosen because of the evidence in Japanese patients and the results of a sub-analysis of ROCKET AF suggesting that rivaroxaban is more effective than VKA in reducing the incidence of myocardial infarction (MI).

This study aims to investigate the effect of MUSE (R) Headbands on patients with Atrial Fibrillation who is awaiting pulmonary vein isolation ablation procedure. Patients are randomized in 2 arms. The control arm will not be receiving the MUSE headband, whereas the treatment group obtains a device. Patients from both group will fill out a quality-of-life questionnaire at the time of enrollment and 3 months post PVI. Results from both arms will be evaluated and ultimately the effect of mindfulness using the headband will be evaluated in the aforementioned patient population.

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).