This report describes the first 12 cases of percutaneous left atrial appendage closure performed in South Africa for patients with atrial fibrillation and contraindications to warfarin.
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First South African LAAO cases show feasibility; leaves open need for larger studies before wider adoption.
Atrial fibrillation is a common cause of cardiac embolic events, especially stroke. Oral anticoagulation therapy is used to reduce these events. Many patients however are unable to take such therapy. Percutaneous occlusion of the left atrial appendage (the source of 90% of these emboli) is an option in these patients. Presented here are the first 12 patients to have this procedure done in South Africa.
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Mark Abelson (2013) studied this question.
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