Atrial fibrillation in cardiac resynchronization therapy patients: should we ablate the atrioventricular node?

Prevalence of persistent atrial fibrillation in patients undergoing cardiac resynchronization therapy remains high. Several factors, including suboptimal biventricular capture rates, compound the significant mortality and response rates in patients with atrial fibrillation and severe heart failure. Atrioventricular nodal ablation provides the best mean of rate control in this population. In this article, the authors evaluate a recently published trial addressing this issue in a prospective fashion and discuss the results and clinical applications.