Active clinical trials for "Atrial Fibrillation"

Prevalence of primary aldosteronism (PA) in resistant hypertension is not clear. In addition, emerging evidence supports the role of elevated serum aldosterone in promoting cardiovascular disease, independently from high blood pressure (BP) levels, but current data on this issue are heterogeneous.

The aim of this project is to identify a variable that discerns patients who are interested in their disease (atrial fibrillation/atrial flutter) from patients who show no interest and furthermore test this theory in a questionnaire survey. This should help distinguish between patients who are interested in shared decision making and patients who are not (further projects planned).

The aim of the ALFA ROMEO study is to better understand the association between cryptogenic stroke, PFO, PFO closure and AF.

Cryoballoon ablation is proven to be effective in pulmonary vein isolation in patients with paroxysmal and persistent atrial fibrillation. We previously reported that the rhythm outcome of radiofrequency (RF) catheter ablations are equivalent in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation and in those with surgically and hemodynamically corrected valvular atrial fibrillation. In contrast, the Cryoballoon ablation can reduce the procedure times, it cannot conduct empirical linear ablation or extra-pulmonary vein foci ablation. The aim of this study is to compare Cryoballoon pulmonary vein isolation and RF ablation including linear ablation or extra-pulmonary vein foci ablations in patients with hemodynamically corrected valvular atrial fibrillation.

Preliminary data suggest that: a different risk of mortality, as assessed by the Multidimensional Prognostic Indices (MPI), may influence the anticoagulant prescription in older subjects with Atrial Fibrillation (AF); the presence of multidimensional impairment, disability and multi-morbidities are usually not included in the decision algorithm of the more appropriate treatments in older patients with AF; considering the prognostic information, as calculated by the MPI, can be useful to physicians in identifying older patients with AF that can benefit from anticoagulant treatment in term of increased survival.

Title: Optimal Delay Time to Initiate Anticoagulation after Ischemic Stroke in Atrial Fibrillation (START): a pragmatic, adaptive randomized clinical trial. Primary Objective: • To determine the optimal time to initiate anticoagulation with a Non-Vitamin K Oral Anticoagulant (NOAC) after ischemic stroke in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation. Secondary Objectives: To compare the rates of primary adverse outcomes in a per protocol analysis To compare 30 day clinical outcomes by the modified Rankin scale among the time-to-treatment groups To compare 90 day clinical outcomes by the modified Rankin scale among the time-to-treatment groups To explore the optimal timing in subgroups of age, sex, outcome category, and NOAC choice

To obtain data for the Rhythmia™ Mapping System in conjunction with Boston Scientific Open-Irrigated (OI) Catheters for ablation of Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation (PAF) according to current international and local guidelines. Primary objective: To assess acute and long-term outcomes for the Rhythmia Mapping System in conjunction with Boston Scientific Open-Irrigated Ablation Catheters to treat de novo Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation. De Novo PAF is defined as subjects undergoing first ablation procedure for PAF with no prior left atrial ablation (RF, Cryo, Surgical).

Left atrial appendage (LAA) occlusion (LAAC) has been introduced to treat patients with indication of oral anticoagulation (OAC) for atrial fibrillation (AF) with contraindication to OAC. This registry aims to document all LAAC procedures in Austria.

The purpose of the research is to identify the frequency and severity of adverse events related to atrial fibrillation that occur after discharge from hospital where the patient underwent cardiac surgery. The Specific Aims of the proposed study are to: Identify the predictors of postoperative atrial fibrillation after discharge from hospital. Identify the frequency of readmission to hospital, or other resource use such as Emergency Department or outpatient visit, for the treatment or prophylaxis of postoperative AF and consequent stroke or bleeding outcomes. Identify the risks for stroke, death and other morbidity in patients after cardiac surgery and the effect of postoperative AF upon subsequent stroke or bleeding outcomes.

Atrial Fibrillation (AFib) is the most common cardiac arrhythmia, causing the loss of the normal and coordinated atrial contractility. Several studies have demonstrated the existence of some atrial anatomical sites involved in the initiation and maintenance of this arrhythmia, first of all the posterior wall in the area around the outlet of the pulmonary veins. In fact, the existence of a complex of structural and functional modifications has been documented, collectively defined as "structural remodeling" which involve both the cardiomyocyte and the interstitium (the space between the cardiomyocytes) from a histopathological point of view; at the cardiomyocyte level, a loss of sarcomeres in the perinuclear site (myocytolysis), a reduction in the expression of "adult" cellular proteins (e.g. cardiotin and titin) with concomitant re-expression of "fetal" proteins (e.g. muscle actin smooth), as well as a modification of the mitochondrial structure. At the interstitial level, remodeling is characterized by the deposition of fibrous tissue in the interstitium between the muscle bundles and by a reduction in capillary density. Regarding the deposition of collagen fibers, some studies on an experimental model of AFib have shown that the latter is not reversible. Autophagy is an intracellular process regulated by numerous biochemical signals; it is present at basal levels in most tissues and allows the physiological turnover of the various structural components of the cell, directing them to lysosomal degradation. It can also be stimulated by external signals in unfavorable environmental conditions, such as in the case of pathologies that determine a condition of tissue oxidative stress protracted over time. Experimentally, an excessive activation of the latter has been associated with the early stages of pathological cardiac remodeling in various animal models of cardiovascular diseases and some recent studies have hypothesized that altered levels of autophagy may contribute to the possible mechanisms involved in the generation and maintenance of the remodeling cardiomyocyte and interstitial structure in AFib. The levels of autophagic activity can be evaluated by studying specific markers - such as the Beclin-1 and LC3B proteins - constituents of the autophagic signaling cascade. In the case of LC3B, the "LC3BII/LC3BI" ratio (the processed form of autophagosomal vesicles and the unprocessed form constitutively present at the cytoplasmic level) was used as an autophagy biomarker. Furthermore, some microRNAs (miRNAs) capable of controlling the expression of proteins of the autophagic cascade have been described in the literature. This is the case of miRNA 30a and miRNA 204, respectively, which respectively inhibit the expression of Beclin-1 and of LC3B. This study aims to investigate from a histo-morphological and molecular point of view the presence of alterations of autophagy mechanisms in patients with persistent or permanent AFib and which correlate these modifications with the degree of structural remodeling present at the level of the left atrial myocardium.