Women Have More Recurrences of Atrial Fibrillation than Men after Thoracoscopic Ablation and Suffer More from Established Risk Factors

Figures

• 

  Figure 1. Kaplan–Meier analysis of women and men during two years follow-up. Men: solid blue line, women: dashed red line. AF = atrial fibrillation.

• 

  Figure 2. Univariate and multivariable Cox regression of patient characteristics and freedom of AF recurrence, for all included patients. AF atrial fibrillation, BMI body mass index, CI confidence interval, cm centimeter, CRP c-reactive protein, HR hazard ratio, kg kilogram, LAVI left atrial volume index, LVEF left ventricular ejection fraction, m meter, mL milliliter, MV mitral valve, ng nanogram, NT-proBNP n-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide, pg pictogram, y years, µg microgram.

• 

  Figure 3. Univariate Cox regression of patient characteristics and freedom from AF recurrence for women (first, red) and men (second, blue) separately. AF atrial fibrillation, BMI body mass index, CI confidence interval, cm centimeter, CRP c-reactive protein, HR hazard ratio, kg kilogram, LAVI left atrial volume index, LVEF left ventricular ejection fraction, m meter, ml milliliter, MV mitral valve, ng nanogram, NT-proBNP n-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide, pg pictogram, y years, µg microgram.

• 

  Figure 4. Different impact of the risk factors between women and men. (A) Patients with paroxysmal AF (left) and persistent AF (right); (B) young (first quartile, <55 y) and old patients (fourth quartile, >67 y); (C) normal LA size (LAVI < 34 mL/m2) and enlarged LA (LAVI > 33 mL/m2).

• 

  Figure 5. Percentage of collagen in Picrosirius red-stained histologic sections. (A) Total percentage of collagen in the histologic sections. (B) Percentage of epicardial and endocardial collagen, (C) Percentage of interstitial collagen.

• 

  Figure 6. Typical example of histologic collagen analysis of the left atrial appendage tissue. Red = collagen, yellow = myocardial cells. (A) Relatively thick epicardial layer of a woman, (B) relatively thin epicardial layer of a man.