Left atrial functional changes associated with repeated catheter ablations for atrial fibrillation

Introduction The impact of repeated atrial fibrillation (AF) ablations on left atrial (LA) mechanical function remains uncertain, with limited long‐term follow‐up data. Methods This retrospective study involved 108 AF patients who underwent two catheter ablations with cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) done before and 3 months after each of the ablations from 2010 to 2021. The rate of change in peak longitudinal atrial strain (PLAS) assessed LA function. Additionally, a sub‐study of 36 patients who underwent an extra MRI before the second ablation, gave us an additional time segment to evaluate the basis of change in PLAS. Results In the two‐ablation, three MRI sub‐study 1, the PLAS percent change rate was similar before and after the first ablation ( r 11 = − 0.9 ± 3.1%/year, p = 0.771). However, the strain change rate from postablation 1 to postablation 2 was significantly worse ( r 12 = − 23.7 ± 4.8%/year, p < 0.001). In the sub‐study 2 with four MRIs, all three rates were negative, with reductions from postablation 1 to pre‐ablation 2 ( r 22 = − 13.3 ± 2.6%/year, p < 0.001) and from pre‐ablation 2 to postablation 2 ( r 23 = −8.9 ± 3.9%/year, p = 0.028) being significant. Conclusion The present study suggests that the more ablations performed, the more significant the decrease in the postablation mechanical function of the LA. The natural progression of AF (strain change from postablation 1 to pre‐ablation 2) had a greater negative influence on LA mechanical function compared to the second ablation itself suggesting that second ablation in patients with recurrence after first ablation is an effective strategy even from the LA mechanical function aspect.