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Background: Many patients with newly created arteriovenous fistulas (AVF) may die before the AVF is needed for hemodialysis. However, formal competing risks frameworks are rarely used to report AVF patency, which may lead to biased estimates. We sought to identify the proportion of newly created AVF experiencing primary non-function and to describe long-term patency using a competing risk framework., Methods: We did a prospective observational study in 257 adults with newly created AVF in Alberta, Canada. The primary outcome was primary non-function. Secondary outcomes included loss of primary-patency, loss of assisted primary-patency, and loss of secondary functional-patency. Results were presented using icon-array plots to form the basis for future decision aids., Results: Participants were 63.0% male with mean age 62.3 years and median follow-up of 18.5 months (range 0.02-180 months). Of 257 participants, 50 could not be assessed for function or primary non-function, usually due to death. Of the remaining 207, 102 (49.3%) had primary non-function, and function was ultimately established for 142 (68.6%). Thus, only 142 of the 257 participants (55.3%) ultimately used the AVF for hemodialysis. High rates of competing risks led to biased results from Kaplan-Meier analyses of lost patency. When accounting for competing risks, loss of primary-patency among AVF with established function was 36.6%, 65.5% and 66.2%, at 1y, 3y and 5y respectively., Conclusions: Only 55% of fistulas were ultimately used for hemodialysis when accounting for competing risks and primary non-function. These results and the icon-array plots may inform discussions surrounding vascular access options for patients., (Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. on behalf of the American Society of Nephrology.)

Background and Aims: Risk stratification of sudden cardiac death after myocardial infarction and prevention by defibrillator rely on left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). Improved risk stratification across the whole LVEF range is required for decision-making on defibrillator implantation., Methods: The analysis pooled 20 data sets with 140 204 post-myocardial infarction patients containing information on demographics, medical history, clinical characteristics, biomarkers, electrocardiography, echocardiography, and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging. Separate analyses were performed in patients (i) carrying a primary prevention cardioverter-defibrillator with LVEF ≤ 35% [implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) patients], (ii) without cardioverter-defibrillator with LVEF ≤ 35% (non-ICD patients ≤ 35%), and (iii) without cardioverter-defibrillator with LVEF > 35% (non-ICD patients >35%). Primary outcome was sudden cardiac death or, in defibrillator carriers, appropriate defibrillator therapy. Using a competing risk framework and systematic internal-external cross-validation, a model using LVEF only, a multivariable flexible parametric survival model, and a multivariable random forest survival model were developed and externally validated. Predictive performance was assessed by random effect meta-analysis., Results: There were 1326 primary outcomes in 7543 ICD patients, 1193 in 25 058 non-ICD patients ≤35%, and 1567 in 107 603 non-ICD patients >35% during mean follow-up of 30.0, 46.5, and 57.6 months, respectively. In these three subgroups, LVEF poorly predicted sudden cardiac death (c-statistics between 0.50 and 0.56). Considering additional parameters did not improve calibration and discrimination, and model generalizability was poor., Conclusions: More accurate risk stratification for sudden cardiac death and identification of low-risk individuals with severely reduced LVEF or of high-risk individuals with preserved LVEF was not feasible, neither using LVEF nor using other predictors., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)

Heart rhythm management is a continuously evolving sub-speciality of cardiology. Every year, many physicians and allied professionals (APs) start and complete their training in cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs) or electrophysiology (EP) across the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA) member countries. While this training ideally ends with an EHRA certification, the description of the learning pathway (what, how, when, and where) through an EHRA core curriculum is also a prerequisite for a successful training. The first EHRA core curriculum for physicians was published in 2009. Due to the huge developments in the field of EP and device therapy, this document needed updating. In addition, a certification process for APs has been introduced, as well as a recertification process and accreditation of EHRA recognized training centres. Learning pathways are more individualized now, with Objective Structured Assessment of Technical Skills (OSATS) to monitor learning progression of trainees. The 2024 updated EHRA core curriculum for physicians and APs describes, for both CIED and EP, the syllabus, OSATS, training programme and certification, and recertification for physicians and APs and stresses the importance of continued medical education after certification. In addition, requirements for accreditation of training centres and trainers are given. Finally, suggested reading lists for CIED and EP are attached as online supplements., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest: none declared., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)

Background: Practice guidelines recommend ablation (ABL) in atrial fibrillation (AF) for rhythm control. Guidance for antiarrhythmic drugs (AADs) post-ABL is limited., Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine AAD and ABL practices in the United States and Europe., Methods: An online survey of experienced cardiologists (CDs) (n = 360) and interventional electrophysiologists (EPs) (n = 269) was conducted. AAD- and ABL-related survey questions and responses were analyzed., Results: ABL was preferred more often as first-line AF therapy (Rx) by US CDs/EPs (P ≤.001). ABL was selected to avoid AAD Rx by 46% (50% CDs, 40% EPs); to prevent AF progression by 41% (36% CDs, 47% EPs); and for superior efficacy by 28% (27% CDs, 30% EPs). ABL was used by 9% in asymptomatic AF (9% CDs, 10% EPs), by 14% in subclinical AF (13% CDs, 14% EPs), and by 17% for first AF event (15% CDs, 18% EPs). Primary ABL was preferred in heart failure by 38%. Comorbidities, age, and left atrial size were limitations for ABL by 48%, 40%, and 38%, respectively. AADs were used after ABL for AF/atrial tachycardia (AT) prophylaxis by 34% for 3-6 months and 29% for 1-2 months. AADs were given for a single AF recurrence by 34%, bridging to re-ABL by 32%, and long-term Rx by 34%. AF/AT post-ABL was most often managed with amiodarone (42%-48%)., Conclusion: ABL was frequently preferred over AADs in symptomatic AF but notably also was used for asymptomatic and subclinical AF. Post-ABL AAD Rx for AF prophylaxis or recurrence was frequent, with empiric amiodarone being the most often selected AAD., Competing Interests: Disclosures The funding organization had no role in the study design, data collection, data analysis, data interpretation, or decision to publish the substudy. Dr Camm received personal fees from Anthos, AcesionPharma, Incarda Therapeutics, Menarini, Milestone, Sanofi, Bayer, Daiichi Sankyo Inc., Abbott, Biosense-Webster, Pfizer, Boston Scientific, Biotronik, Johnson & Johnson, and Medtronic. Dr Slee reports being a consultant to Pulse Biosciences and Janssen Pharmaceuticals. Dr Blomström-Lundqvist reports speaker and consultant fees of modest amount from Bayer, Boston SCI, Johnson & Johnson, Philips, Medtronic, Abbott, Cathprint, Organon, Milestone, and Sanofi outside the present work. Dr Boriani reports speaker fees of modest amount from Bayer, Boston, Daiichi Sankyo, Janssen, and Sanofi outside the present work. Dr Merino has received fees and honoraria for lectures, education, or scientific advice and institutional fellow grant support from Abbott, AstraZeneca, Biotronik, Medtronic, Microport, and Zoll. Dr Piccini receives grants for clinical research from Abbott, the American Heart Association, Boston Scientific, iRhythm, and Philips; and serves as a consultant to ABVF, Abbott, AbbVie, Boston Scientific, ElectroPhysiology Frontiers, Kardium, LivaNova, Medtronic, Milestone Pharmaceuticals, Sanofi, Philips, and Up-to-Date. Dr Reiffel reports being an investigator for Sanofi, InCarda Therapeutics, Johnson & Johnson, and Amarin; and as a consultant for Sanofi and Acesion. Dr Kowey reports speaker fees from Sanofi and Medtronic. Dr Saksena reports a significant research grant from Abbott; significant consulting fees from Hyloris and Academic Pharmaceuticals; modest investigator fees from Abbott; and modest consulting fees from Sanofi. Dr Goette has no conflicts of interest to disclose., (Copyright © 2024 Heart Rhythm Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background and Objectives: Accurate diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases often relies on the electrocardiogram (ECG). Since the cardiac vector is located within a three-dimensional space and the standard ECG comprises 12 projections or leads derived from it, redundant information is inherently present. This study aims to quantify this redundancy and its impact on classification tasks using Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) in cardiovascular diseases., Methods: We employed signal theory and mutual information to introduce a novel redundancy metric and explored techniques for redundancy augmentation and reduction. This involved lead selection and transformation to evaluate the effects on neural network performance., Results: Our findings indicate that optimizing input configurations through redundancy reduction techniques can enhance the performance of deep learning models in cardiovascular diagnostics, provided that the information is preserved and minimally distorted., Conclusion: For the first time, this research has quantified the redundancy present in the input by validating various redundancy reduction techniques using a CNN. This discovery paves the way for advancing biomedical signal processing research, simplifying model complexity, and enhancing diagnostic performance in cardiovascular medicine within reduced lead systems, such as Holter monitors or wearables., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Ramirez, Ruiperez-Campillo, Casado-Arroyo, Merino, Vogt, Castells and Millet.)

Aims: There is lack of agreement on late gadolinium enhancement cardiac magnetic resonance (LGE-CMR) imaging processing for guiding ventricular tachycardia (VT) ablation. We aim at developing and validating a systematic processing approach on LGE-CMR images to identify VT corridors that contain critical VT isthmus sites., Methods and Results: This is a translational study including 18 pigs with established myocardial infarction and inducible VT undergoing in vivo characterization of the anatomical and functional myocardial substrate associated with VT maintenance. Clinical validation was conducted in a multicentre series of 33 patients with ischaemic cardiomyopathy undergoing VT ablation. Three-dimensional LGE-CMR images were processed using systematic scanning of 15 signal intensity (SI) cut-off ranges to obtain surface visualization of all potential VT corridors. Analysis and comparisons of imaging and electrophysiological data were performed in individuals with full electrophysiological characterization of the isthmus sites of at least one VT morphology. In both the experimental pig model and patients undergoing VT ablation, all the electrophysiologically defined isthmus sites (n = 11 and n = 19, respectively) showed overlapping regions with CMR-based potential VT corridors. Such imaging-based VT corridors were less specific than electrophysiologically guided ablation lesions at critical isthmus sites. However, an optimized strategy using the 7 most relevant SI cut-off ranges among patients showed an increase in specificity compared to using 15 SI cut-off ranges (70 vs. 62%, respectively), without diminishing the capability to detect VT isthmus sites (sensitivity 100%)., Conclusion: Systematic imaging processing of LGE-CMR sequences using several SI cut-off ranges may improve and standardize procedure planning to identify VT isthmus sites., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest: none declared., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)

Background: The Manufacturer and User Facility Device Experience (MAUDE) database houses medical device reports of adverse events involving medical devices marketed in the United States submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) by mandatory and voluntary reporters. The MAUDE database is frequently used in clinical studies to report on device-related complications. Data about its efficacy are scarce., Objective: We aimed to compare the mandatory MAUDE database (MAUDE group) with the invitation-based POTTER-AF study (POTTER-AF 1 group) regarding data quality, procedural characteristics, diagnosis, treatment, and survival., Methods: The reports of esophageal fistula esophageal fistula following atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation in the MAUDE database were compared with those in the POTTER-AF study between August 1, 2009, and August 31, 2019., Results: Esophageal fistulas were reported in 47 patients in the MAUDE group and in 81 in the POTTER-AF 1 group. Procedures were performed with radiofrequency, cryoenergy, or laser energy in 66.0%, 31.9%, and 2.1% (MAUDE group) and in 96.3%, 2.5%, and 1.2% (POTTER-AF 1 group). The median time to symptoms was 21 (14, 32.5) days (MAUDE group) and 18.0 (6.8, 22.3) days (POTTER-AF 1 group; P = .031). The diagnostic method was reported in 38.3% of patients in the MAUDE group and in 98.8% in the POTTER-AF 1 group, the treatment in 57.4% and 100%, and the outcome in all patients. In the MAUDE group, treatment was surgical (51.9%), endoscopic (37.0%), combined (3.7%), or conservative (7.4%), compared with 43.2%, 19.8%, 7.4%, and 29.6% in the POTTER-AF 1 group. Overall mortality was 76.6% in the MAUDE group and 61.7% in the POTTER-AF 1 group (P = .118)., Conclusion: In the mandatory MAUDE database, fewer esophageal fistula cases were reported compared with an invitation-based study. The data quality in the MAUDE database was significantly poorer., Competing Interests: Disclosures Dr Tilz is a consultant for Boston Scientific, Philips, Medtronic Biosense Webster, and Abbott Medical; he has received speaker`s honoraria from Boston Scientific, Biotronik, Biosense Webster, Abbott Medical, Lifetech, and Pfizer and research grants from Abbott, Biotronik, Medtronic, Biosense Webster, and Lifetech. He has received travel grants from Abbott, Biosense Webster, Boston Scientific, Medtronic, and Philips. Dr Heeger has received travel grants and research grants from Abbott, Boston Scientific, Lifetech, Biosense Webster, and Haemonetics and speaker honoraria from Abbott, Boston Scientific, Lifetech, Biosense Webster, CTI GmbH, Doctrina Med, Wikonnekt, Haemonetics, and Pfizer. Dr Popescu has received travel grants and congress grants from Lifetech and an educational grant and speaker grant from Abbott Medical. Dr Pürerfellner servers as a consultant for Boston Scientific, Biosense Webster, Abbott Medical, and Medtronic; he has received speaker`s honoraria from Boston Scientific, Biotronik, Biosense Webster, Abbott, and Medtronic. Dr Catanzaro has received royalties from the University of Florida Research Foundation and research funding from Circa Scientific. Dr Kuck has received grants and personal fees from Abbott Vascular, Medtronic, and Biosense Webster outside the submitted work. Dr Vogler has received speaker honoraria from Abbott, Boston Scientific, Impulse Dynamics, Pfizer, and Doctrina Med. Dr Steven has received speaker honoraria from Abbott and Biosense Webster and is a consultant for Abbott and Boston Scientific. Dr Veltmann is a consultant for Biotronik and Medtronic; he has received speaker`s honoraria from Boston Scientific, Biotronik, Abbott Medical, BMS, Medtronic, and Zoll. Dr Merino has received fees and honoraria for lectures, education, and scientific advice from Biotronik, Microport, and Zoll. The other authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose., (Copyright © 2024 Heart Rhythm Society. All rights reserved.)

Introduction and Objectives: We report the results of the 2023 Spanish catheter ablation registry., Methods: Procedural data were collected and incorporated into the REDCap platform by all participating centers through a specific form., Results: There were 104 participating centers in 2023 compared with 103 in 2022. In 2023, the total number of ablation procedures was 26 207, indicating a stabilization of the increase observed in 2022 following the pandemic. The increase was mainly due to procedures for atrial fibrillation (AF), with a total of 9942 ablations, representing 38% of all substrates. Notably, pulse-field ablation represented 10.3% of all AF ablation procedures, leading single-shot ablation strategies to outnumber point-by-point AF ablation for the first time in the history of the registry. Cavotricuspid isthmus ablation remained the second most targeted substrate (19% of all substrates, n=5067). The overall acute success rate remained high (97%), with a downward trend in the complication rate (1.6% vs 1.8% in 2022) and mortality rate (0.03%; n=7). Compared with 2022, there was a significant increase in procedures performed using electro-anatomical mapping and zero-fluoroscopy techniques for cavotricuspid isthmus ablation (52% vs 26%), AV node re-entrant tachycardia (48% vs 34%), and accessory pathways (62% vs 22%). We registered 466 ablations in pediatric patients., Conclusions: The data indicate a stabilization in the post-pandemic increase in ablation procedures, with an absolute and relative increase in AF as the predominant substrate. Success rates remained stable with a modest reduction in complication and mortality rates., (Copyright © 2024 Sociedad Española de Cardiología. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Background: Unknown cardioembolic sources are frequent causes of cryptogenic stroke. We analyzed the risk of atrial fibrillation (AF) or high burden of ectopic atrial activity (HBEA) in patients with cryptogenic stroke, assessing atrial function and 1-year outcomes., Methods and Results: The ARIES (Atrial Imaging and Cardiac Rhythm in Cryptogenic Embolic Stroke) study is an observational study including patients with cryptogenic stroke. We analyzed the frequency of AF and HBEA (>3000 atrial ectopic beats/day or >2 bursts or atrial tachycardia between 3 beats and ≤30 seconds) in two 30-day Holter-ECGs, comparing advanced echocardiography signs of left atrial (LA) dysfunction according to rhythm: AF, HBEA, and normal sinus rhythm. We also evaluated 1-year stroke recurrence and mortality. The study included 109 patients; 35 (32.1%) patients had AF, 27 (24.8%) HBEA, and 47 (43.1%) normal sinus rhythm. Compared with those with normal sinus rhythm, patients with AF presented higher 2-dimensional and 3-dimensional LA indexed volumes (38.8±11.2 versus 27.3±11.8 mL/m 2 , and 50.6±17.2 versus 34.0±15.4 mL/m 2 , respectively, P <0.001), lower 3-dimensional LA ejection fraction (50±14.6 versus 62.7±11.8, P =0.001), LA reservoir strain (22.0±8.6 versus 30.4±10.5, P <0.001), and LA contraction strain (10.5±8.18 versus 17.1±7.5, P <0.001), remaining significant in multivariate analysis. Patients with HBEA showed higher LA indexed volumes and lower LA reservoir strain than patients with normal sinus rhythm only in univariate analysis. There were no differences in ischemic recurrence or mortality among the groups., Conclusions: Patients with cryptogenic stroke showed a high incidence of AF and HBEA. AF is strongly related to LA volume, LA function, and LA reservoir and contraction strain, whereas HBEA showed milder structural changes. Advanced LA echocardiography could help patient selection for long-term ECG monitoring in suspected cardiac sources.

In the last three decades, ablation of atrial fibrillation (AF) has become an evidence-based safe and efficacious treatment for managing the most common cardiac arrhythmia. In 2007, the first joint expert consensus document was issued, guiding healthcare professionals involved in catheter or surgical AF ablation. Mounting research evidence and technological advances have resulted in a rapidly changing landscape in the field of catheter and surgical AF ablation, thus stressing the need for regularly updated versions of this partnership which were issued in 2012 and 2017. Seven years after the last consensus, an updated document was considered necessary to define a contemporary framework for selection and management of patients considered for or undergoing catheter or surgical AF ablation. This consensus is a joint effort from collaborating cardiac electrophysiology societies, namely the European Heart Rhythm Association, the Heart Rhythm Society, the Asia Pacific Heart Rhythm Society, and the Latin American Heart Rhythm Society., Competing Interests: Data availability No new data were generated or analyzed in support of this research., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Aims: The accomplishment of value-based healthcare (VBHC) models could save up to $1 trillion per year for healthcare systems worldwide while improving patients' wellbeing and experience. Nevertheless, its adoption and development are challenging. This review aims to provide an overview of current literature pertaining to the implementation of VBHC models used in cardiology, with a focus on cardiac electrophysiology., Methods and Results: This scoping review was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis for Scoping Reviews. The records included in this publication were relevant documents published in PubMed, Mendeley, and ScienceDirect. The search criteria were publications about VBHC in the field of cardiology and electrophysiology published between 2006 and 2023. The implementation of VBHC models in cardiology and electrophysiology is still in its infant stages. There is a clear need to modify the current organizational structure in order to establish cross-functional teams with the patient at the centre of care. The adoption of new reimbursement schemes is crucial to moving this process forward. The implementation of technologies for data analysis and patient management, among others, poses challenges to the change process., Conclusion: New VBHC models have the potential to improve the care process and patient experience while optimizing the costs. The implementation of this model has been insufficient mainly because it requires substantial changes in the existing infrastructures and local organization, the need to track adherence to guidelines, and the evaluation of the quality of life improvement and patient satisfaction, among others., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest: R.C-A. has received small amounts for educational meetings from Abbott and Boston Scientific. M.M.Z. reports lecture fees/honoraria and travel support by Medtronic, Boston Scientific, Bayer Vital, Pfizer, and ZOLL CMS. F.L., F.B., J.F., L.O., H.P., J.L.M., and G.B. have not declared any conflict of interest., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)

Stereotactic arrythmia radioablation (STAR) is a novel, non-invasive and promising treatment option for ventricular arrythmias (VA). It has been applied in highly selected patients mainly as bail-out procedure, when (multiple) catheter-ablations, together with anti-arrhythmic drugs, were unable to control the VAs. Despite the increasing clinical use there is still limited knowledge of the acute and long-term response of normal and diseased myocardium to STAR. Acute toxicity appeared to be reasonably low but potential late adverse effects may be underreported. Among published studies, the provided methodological information is often limited, and patient selection, target volume definition, methods for determination and transfer of target volume, and techniques for treatment planning and execution differ across studies, hampering pooling of data and comparison across studies. In addition, STAR requires close and new collaboration between clinical electrophysiologists and radiation oncologists, which is facilitated by shared knowledge in each collaborator's area of expertise and a common language. This clinical consensus statement provides uniform definition of cardiac target volumes. It aims to provide advice in patient selection for STAR including etiology specific aspects, and advice in optimal cardiac target volume identification based on available evidence. Safety concerns and the advice for acute and long-term monitoring including the importance of standardized reporting and follow-up are covered by this document. Areas of uncertainty are listed, which require high-quality, reliable pre-clinical and clinical evidence before expansion of STAR beyond clinical scenarios in which proven therapies are ineffective or unavailable., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)

Cardiac sarcoidosis (CS) is a form of inflammatory cardiomyopathy associated with significant clinical complications such as high-degree atrioventricular block, ventricular tachycardia, and heart failure as well as sudden cardiac death. It is therefore important to provide an expert consensus statement summarizing the role of different available diagnostic tools and emphasizing the importance of a multidisciplinary approach. By integrating clinical information and the results of diagnostic tests, an accurate, validated, and timely diagnosis can be made, while alternative diagnoses can be reasonably excluded. This clinical expert consensus statement reviews the evidence on the management of different CS manifestations and provides advice to practicing clinicians in the field on the role of immunosuppression and the treatment of cardiac complications based on limited published data and the experience of international CS experts. The monitoring and risk stratification of patients with CS is also covered, while controversies and future research needs are explored., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology. All rights reserved. For commercial re-use, please contact reprints@oup.com for reprints and translation rights for reprints. All other permissions can be obtained through our RightsLink service via the Permissions link on the article page on our site—for further information please contact journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Aims: Same-day discharge (SDD) after catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation (AF) may address the growing socio-economic health burden of the increasing demand for interventional AF therapies. This systematic review and meta-analysis analyses the current evidence on clinical outcomes in SDD after AF ablation compared with overnight stay (ONS)., Methods and Results: A systematic search of the PubMed database was performed. Pre-defined endpoints were complications at short-term (24-96 h) and 30-day post-discharge, re-hospitalization, and/or emergency room (ER) visits at 30-day post-discharge, and 30-day mortality. Twenty-four studies (154 716 patients) were included. Random-effects models were applied for meta-analyses of pooled endpoint prevalence in the SDD cohort and for comparison between SDD and ONS cohorts. Pooled estimates for complications after SDD were low both for short-term [2%; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1-5%; I2: 89%) and 30-day follow-up (2%; 95% CI: 1-4%; I2: 91%). There was no significant difference in complications rates between SDD and ONS [short-term: risk ratio (RR): 1.62; 95% CI: 0.52-5.01; I2: 37%; 30 days: RR: 0.65; 95% CI: 0.42-1.00; I2: 95%). Pooled rates of re-hospitalization/ER visits after SDD were 4% (95% CI: 1-10%; I2: 96%) with no statistically significant difference between SDD and ONS (RR: 0.86; 95% CI: 0.58-1.27; I2: 61%). Pooled 30-day mortality was low after SDD (0%; 95% CI: 0-1%; I2: 33%). All studies were subject to a relevant risk of bias, mainly due to study design., Conclusion: In this meta-analysis including a large contemporary cohort, SDD after AF ablation was associated with low prevalence of post-discharge complications, re-hospitalizations/ER visits and mortality, and a similar risk compared with ONS. Due to limited quality of current evidence, further prospective, randomized trials are needed to confirm safety of SDD and define patient- and procedure-related prerequisites for successful and safe SDD strategies., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest: M.M.Z. reports lecture fees/honoraria and travel support by Medtronic, Boston Scientific, Bayer Vital, Pfizer, Abbott, and ZOLL CMS. F.L. is a consultant to and has received financial research support from Medtronic, Abbott, Boston Scientific, Biotronik, and MicroPort. R.C.-A. has received small amounts for educational meetings from Abbott and Boston Scientific. F.B. has received fees from Medtronic and Biotronik for trial committee assignments. Other industry collaborations are handled through the employer with no personal fees paid to FB. H.P. reports honoraria for lectures and scientific advice from Abbott, Boston Scientific, Biosense Webster, and Medtronic. J.L.M reports fees and honoraria for lectures, education and scientific advice from Biotronik, MicroPort, and Zoll. G.B. reports small speaker fees from Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Boston, Daiichi Sankyo, Janssen, and Sanofi outside of the submitted work. The other authors have no conflict of interest to disclose., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)

Atrial fibrillation (AF) causes progressive structural and electrical changes in the atria that can be summarized within the general concept of atrial remodeling. In parallel, other clinical characteristics and comorbidities may also affect atrial tissue properties and make the atria susceptible to AF initiation and its long-term persistence. Overall, pathological atrial changes lead to atrial cardiomyopathy with important implications for rhythm control. Although there is general agreement on the role of the atrial substrate for successful rhythm control in AF, the current classification oversimplifies clinical management. The classification uses temporal criteria and does not establish a well-defined strategy to characterize the individual-specific degree of atrial cardiomyopathy. Better characterization of atrial cardiomyopathy may improve the decision-making process on the most appropriate therapeutic option. We review current scientific evidence and propose a practical characterization of the atrial substrate based on 3 evaluation steps starting with a clinical evaluation (step 1), then assess outpatient complementary data (step 2), and finally include information from advanced diagnostic tools (step 3). The information from each of the steps or a combination thereof can be used to classify AF patients in 4 stages of atrial cardiomyopathy, which we also use to estimate the success on effective rhythm control., (Copyright © 2024 Sociedad Española de Cardiología. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Background: Desmin (DES) pathogenic variants cause a small proportion of arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy (ACM). Outcomes data on DES-related ACM are scarce., Objectives: This study sought to provide information on the clinical phenotype and outcomes of patients with ACM caused by pathogenic variants of the DES gene in a multicenter cohort., Methods: We collected phenotypic and outcomes data from 16 families with DES-related ACM from 10 European centers. We assessed in vitro DES aggregates. Major cardiac events were compared to historical controls with lamin A/C truncating variant (LMNA-tv) and filament C truncating variant (FLNC-tv) ACM., Results: Of 82 patients (54% males, median age: 36 years), 11 experienced sudden cardiac death (SCD) (n = 7) or heart failure death (HFd)/heart transplantation (HTx) (n = 4) before clinical evaluation. Among 68 survivors, 59 (86%) presented signs of cardiomyopathy, with left ventricular (LV) dominant (50%) or biventricular (34%) disease. Mean LV ejection fraction was 51% ± 13%; 36 of 53 had late gadolinium enhancement (ring-like pattern in 49%). During a median of 6.73 years (Q1-Q3: 3.55-9.52 years), the composite endpoint (sustained ventricular tachycardia, aborted SCD, implantable cardioverter-defibrillator therapy, SCD, HFd, and HTx) was achieved in 15 additional patients with HFd/HTx (n = 5) and SCD/aborted SCD/implantable cardioverter-defibrillator therapy/sustained ventricular tachycardia (n = 10). Male sex (P = 0.004), nonsustained ventricular tachycardia (P = 0.017) and LV ejection fraction ≤50% (P = 0.012) were associated with the composite endpoint. Males with DES variants had similar outcomes to historical FLNC-tv and LMNA-tv controls. However, females showed better outcomes than those with LMNA-tv. In vitro experiments showed the characteristic finding of DES aggregates in 7 of 12 variants., Conclusions: DES ACM is associated with poor outcomes which can be predicted with potentially successful treatments, underscoring the importance of familial evaluation and genetic studies to identify at risk individuals., Competing Interests: Funding Support and Author Disclosures Dr Bermudez-Jimenez has received grants from Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII) through the project JR21/00031 (cofounded by European Regional Development Fund). Dr Zorio has received grants from the Instituto de Salud Carlos III through the projects PI18/01582 and PI21/01282 (co-funded by European Regional Development Fund “A way to make Europe”). Dr Brodehl has received grants from the Medical Faculty of the Ruhr-University Bochum (FoRUM, F1074-2023) and the ‘Deutsche Herzstiftung e.V. (Frankfurt a.M., Germany); and is a shareholder with Tenaya Therapeutics. Dr Lopes has received grants from a Medical Research Council (MRC) Clinical Academic Research Partnership (CARP) award (MR/T005181/1). All other authors have reported that they have no relationships relevant to the contents of this paper to disclose., (Copyright © 2024 American College of Cardiology Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Two-dimensional conjugated metal-organic frameworks (2D cMOFs) are emerging as promising materials for electrochemical energy storage (EES). Despite considerable interest, an understanding of their electrochemical stability and the factors contributing to their degradation during cycling is largely lacking. Here we investigate three Cu-based MOFs and report that the dissolution of 2D cMOFs into electrolytes is a prevalent and significant degradation pathway. Several factors, such as the inherent solubility of ligands in electrolyte solvents and the duration of charge-discharge cycling exert a strong influence on the dissolution process. When these factors combine within a MOF, severely limited cycling stability is observed, with dissolution accounting for up to 80% of capacity degradation. Conversely, excellent cycling stability is observed when testing a Cu-MOF with a sparingly soluble ligand within an optimized potential window. Overall, these findings represent essential insights into the electrochemical stability of 2D cMOFs, offering crucial guidelines for their targeted development in EES applications., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts to declare., (This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry.)

Introduction: The current Spanish Clinical Guidelines on Vascular Access for Hemodialysis support the need for surveillance and monitoring of vascular access (VA) to avoid complications. Ultrasound dilution (UD) methods are accepted for the evaluation of VA flow and Transonic® has established the gold standard method for the measurement. The DMed NephroFlow (NIPRO®) device, based on UD method has recently been incorporated. We report a comparative study between the classic Transonic® versus the new NephroFlow® device., Material and Methods: For two consecutive months, measurements of VA flow using both referred systems were performed in patients with a native arteriovenous fistula (AVF) or a graft (AVG) on hemodialysis (HD) in our unit. Both studies were undertaken according to the usual recommendations: VA flow of 250 ml/min, ultrafiltration rate without modifications, both needles in the same vein, and always in the first hour of the HD session., Results: Forty-five patients were included: 17 women and 28 men, mean age of 67 ± 12 years. Thirty patients were diabetic. The baseline meantime on HD was 51 ± 39 months (range: 3-163). Type of VA was: 17 patients radio-cephalic AVF, 17 brachiocephalic AVF, 7 brachiobasilic AVF, and 3 with a graft. The mean flow estimated by the Transonic® was 1222 ± 805 ml/min and the estimated flow by the NephroFlow® device was 1252 ± 975 ml/min. Good reliability between Transonic® and NephroFlow® was observed, with a reliability index of Cronbach's Alpha of 0.927 and an Intraclass Correlation Index of 0.928., Conclusions: The NephroFlow® device seems comparable with the accepted gold standard UD method for estimating VA flow. More studies must be performed to verify these results. However, they should be considered for the surveillance and monitoring of VA flow, in agreement with the Spanish Guidelines., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Aims: Recent trial data demonstrate beneficial effects of active rhythm management in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) and support the concept that a low arrhythmia burden is associated with a low risk of AF-related complications. The aim of this document is to summarize the key outcomes of the 9th AFNET/EHRA Consensus Conference of the Atrial Fibrillation NETwork (AFNET) and the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA)., Methods and Results: Eighty-three international experts met in Münster for 2 days in September 2023. Key findings are as follows: (i) Active rhythm management should be part of the default initial treatment for all suitable patients with AF. (ii) Patients with device-detected AF have a low burden of AF and a low risk of stroke. Anticoagulation prevents some strokes and also increases major but non-lethal bleeding. (iii) More research is needed to improve stroke risk prediction in patients with AF, especially in those with a low AF burden. Biomolecules, genetics, and imaging can support this. (iv) The presence of AF should trigger systematic workup and comprehensive treatment of concomitant cardiovascular conditions. (v) Machine learning algorithms have been used to improve detection or likely development of AF. Cooperation between clinicians and data scientists is needed to leverage the potential of data science applications for patients with AF., Conclusions: Patients with AF and a low arrhythmia burden have a lower risk of stroke and other cardiovascular events than those with a high arrhythmia burden. Combining active rhythm control, anticoagulation, rate control, and therapy of concomitant cardiovascular conditions can improve the lives of patients with AF., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest The 9th AFNET/EHRA consensus conference was partially supported by the European Union MAESTRIA project (grant agreement 965286) to AFNET. The following participants and authors are employees of companies active in cardiovascular health as indicated in their affiliations: M.D.M., E.D., C.E., G.H., L.H.H., T.H., R.H.v.L., M.W., and H.W. P.K. was partially supported by the European Union AFFECT-AF (grant agreement 847770) and MAESTRIA (grant agreement 965286), German Center for Cardiovascular Research supported by the German Ministry of Education and Research (DZHK, grant numbers DZHK FKZ 81X2800182, 81Z0710116, and 81Z0710110), German Research Foundation (Ki 509167694), and Leducq Foundation. He receives research support for basic, translational, and clinical research projects from several drug and device companies active in AF and has received honoraria from several such companies in the past, but not in the last 3 years. He is listed as an inventor on two issued patents held by the University of Hamburg (Atrial Fibrillation Therapy WO 2015140571, Markers for Atrial Fibrillation WO 2016012783). J.G.A. was partially supported by the Canadian Arrhythmia Network and the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research, Baylis Medical. He receives consulting fees/honoraria from Bayer, BMS/Pfizer Alliance, Servier, and Medtronic Inc. E.A. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Biosense Webster and Bayer. G.B. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Bayer, BMS, Boston Scientific, Daiichi Sankyo, Sanofi, and Janssen. A.J.C. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Bayer, Pfizer/BMS, Daiichi Sankyo, Menarini, Sanofi, Boston Scientific, Biosense Webster, Abbott, Acesion Pharma, Huya Bio, and Milestone. V.C. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, and Ever Pharma (paid to the institution of employment). W.D. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Reata and research grants from MicroPort, Boston Scientific, and Abbott. S.Z.D. receives consulting fees from BMS/Pfizer, Cortrium, and Acesion Pharma and speaker fees from MS/Pfizer and Bayer. He is listed as a medical advisor for Vital Beats. Dobromir D. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Elsevier, Springer Healthcare Ltd, and Daiichi Sankyo and research grants as follows: four NIH grants (partially) from Baylor College of Medicine, Houston; one NIH grant from UC Davis, one NIH grant from the University of Minnesota, and one EU-Project H2020. David D. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Abbott, Astra Zeneca, Biotronik, Boehringer Ingelheim, Boston Scientific, BMS/Pfizer, CVRx, Medtronic, MicroPort, and Zoll and research grants from Roche, CVRx, and Zoll. L.E. has received lecture fees from various companies in AF in the past but none related to the present work. L.F. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Roche (paid to the institution of employment). She is currently employed at the UKE and previously at the University of Birmingham. She was partially supported by the European Union AFFECT-EU (grant agreement 847770), MAESTRIA (grant agreement 965286), CATCH ME (grant agreement 633196), and the British Heart Foundation (AA/18/2/3218). D.F.-R. receives research grants from Abbott. He is listed as an inventor on two issued patents: EP3636147A1 (method for the identification of cardiac fibrillation drivers and/or the footprint of rotational activations) and PCT/EP2022/071364 (system and method of assessment of electromechanical remodelling). A.G. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Daiichi Sankyo, Bayer, BMS/Pfizer, Medtronic, Abbott, and Boston Scientific and was partially supported by the European Union MAESTRIA (grant agreement 965286). K.G.H. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Abbott, Alexion, Amarin, Astra Zeneca, Bayer Healthcare, Biotronik, Boehringer Ingelheim, Boston Scientific, BMS/Pfizer, Daiichi Sankyo, Edwards Lifesciences, Medtronic, Novaris, Portola, Premier Research, Sanofi, SUN Pharma, and W. L. Gore and Associates. J.S.H. receives speaking fees from BMS/Pfizer, Bayer, Servier, and Boston Scientific and consulting fees from Bayer and Boston Scientific. He receives research grants from BMS/Pfizer, Servier, Novartis, Boston Scientific, and Medtronic. H.H. receives lecture and consulting fees from Bayer, Biotronik, BMS/Pfizer, Daiichi Sankyo, Milestone Pharmaceuticals, Centrix India, C.T.I. Germany, ESC, Medscape, and Springer Healthcare Ltd. He receives research grants (paid to the institution of employment, University of Antwerp and/or University of Hasselt) from Abbott, Bayer, Biosense Webster, Boston Scientific, Daiichi Sankyo, Fibricheck/Qompium, Medtronic, and BMS/Pfizer. Z.H. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Boehringer Ingelheim, BMS/Pfizer, and Roche Diagnostics. He was partially supported by The Swedish Society for Medical Research (S17-0133), Hjärt-Lungfonden (The Swedish Heart-Lung Foundation, 20200722), and the institution he is currently employed at (Uppsala University Hospital). L.H.-M. receives research grants from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (PID2020-116927RB-C21) and Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER). D.K. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Bayer, Amomed, and Protherics Medicines Development. He receives research grants from the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR CDF-2015-08-074 RAE-AF; NIHR130280 DaRe2THINK; NIHR13274 D2T-NeuroVascular; and NIHR203326 Biomedical Research Centre), the British Heart Foundation (PG/17/55/33087, AA/182/3218, and FS/CDRF/21/21032), the EU/EFPIA Innovative Medicines Initiative (BigData@Heart 116074), EU Horizon and UKRI (HYPERMARKER 101095480) UK National Health Service—Data for R&D-Subnational Secure Data Environment programme, UK Department for Business, Energy Industrial Strategy Regulators Pioneer Fund, the Cook & Wolstenholme Charitable Trust, and the European Society of Cardiology supported by educational grants from Boehringer Ingelheim, BMS/Pfizer, Alliance, Bayer, Daiichi Sankyo, Boston Scientific, the NIHR/University of Oxford Biomedical Research Centre, and the British Hear Foundation, the University of Birmingham Accelerator Award (STEEER-AF). J.L.M. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Biotronik, Medtronic, MicroPort, and Milestone Pharmaceuticals. A.M. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Medtronic, Biosense Webster, and Boston Scientific and lecture fees from Medtronic, Boston Scientific, Biosense Webster, BMS, and Bayer. L.M. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Abbott, Medtronic, Boston Scientific, and Johnson & Johnson. G.A.N. receives lecture fees from AliveCor, consultant fees from Biosense Webster, and research grants from Abbott and Biosense Webster. H.P. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Abbott, Boston Scientific, Biosense Webster, Medtronic, Daiichi Sankyo, Bayer, and Pfizer. P.S. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Medtronic, Boston Scientific, Abbott, CathRx, and PaceMate (paid to the institution of employment). He is currently employed at the University of Adelaide, which receives research grants from Medtronic, Boston Scientific, and Becton-Dickenson. R.B.S. receives consulting fees/honoraria from BMS/Pfizer. She was partially supported by the European Union Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement 648131 and 847770), German Center for Cardiovascular Research supported by the German Ministry of Education and Research (DZHK, grant numbers 81Z1710103 and 81Z0710114), German Ministry of Research and Education (BMBF 01ZX1408A), ERACoSysMed3 (031L0239), Wolfgang Seefried project funding German Heart Foundation. U.S. receives consulting fees/honoraria from University Svizzerra Italiana, Stanford, and Johnson & Johnson and research grants from the European Union, Dutch Heart Foundation, Roche, and EP Solution. He is a shareholder of YourRhythmics B.V. T.T. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Boston Scientific and Medtronic. I.C.v.G. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Bayer (paid to the institution of employment). She is currently employed at the University of Groningen. K.V. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Abbott, Philips, Medtronic, Biosense Webster, and Boston Scientific and research grants from Medtronic and Biosense Webster. R.W. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Boehringer Ingelheim, BMS/Pfizer, Daiichi Sankyo, Boston Scientific, Biotronik, Abiomed, and Zoll and a research grant from Boston Scientific, BMS/Pfizer, and Abiomed. S.W. receives consulting fees/honoraria from Boehringer Ingelheim, Boston Scientific, Abbott, and Bayer Vital and a research grant from Boston Scientific. All remaining authors (G.B., J.C.N., T.D.P., N.D., M.F., E.G., S.H., S.K., D.L., K.M.-R., M.O., A.S.P., U.R., M.R., D.S., C.S., G.S., D.S., S.T., R.H.v.L., and S.Z.) have declared no conflicts of interest., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)

Electrical storm (ES) is a state of electrical instability, manifesting as recurrent ventricular arrhythmias (VAs) over a short period of time (three or more episodes of sustained VA within 24 h, separated by at least 5 min, requiring termination by an intervention). The clinical presentation can vary, but ES is usually a cardiac emergency. Electrical storm mainly affects patients with structural or primary electrical heart disease, often with an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD). Management of ES requires a multi-faceted approach and the involvement of multi-disciplinary teams, but despite advanced treatment and often invasive procedures, it is associated with high morbidity and mortality. With an ageing population, longer survival of heart failure patients, and an increasing number of patients with ICD, the incidence of ES is expected to increase. This European Heart Rhythm Association clinical consensus statement focuses on pathophysiology, clinical presentation, diagnostic evaluation, and acute and long-term management of patients presenting with ES or clustered VA., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest: Radosław Lenarczyk – nothing to declare, Katja Zeppenfeld – nothing to declare, Jacob Tfelt-Hansen – support received by himself or his institution related to this work - John and Birte Meyer Family Foundation, any other financial support: Johnson and Johnson, Microport, Cytokinetics and Leo Pharma, Frank R. Heinzel – nothing to declare, Thomas Deneke speaker honoraria- Biotronik, Abbott, Biosense Webster, voted member German Cardiology Society leadership team, Elena Ene - travel and proctorship honoraria from Johnson&Johnson, Christian Meyer - Abbott: speaker, Biotronik: consultant, Biosense Webster: consultant, Boston Scientific: consultant, speaker, Arthur Wilde - Associate editor Heart Rhythm, Chair DSMB LEAP trial (unpaid), Member scientific advisory board ARMGO & ThryvTherapeutics (unpaid), Elena Arbelo - Consulting for Bayer and Biosense Webster, Ewa Jędrzejczyk-Patej – nothing to declare, Avi Sabbag – nothing to declare, Markus Stühlinger - speaker honoraria (Biotronik, Medtronic), Luigi di Biase - consultant for Biosense Webster, Stereoataxis and I-Rhythm, has received speaker honoraria/travel from Biosense Webster, St. Jude Medical (now Abbott), Boston Scientific, Medtronic, Biotronik, Atricure, Baylis and Zoll, Marmar Vaseghi – grants NIH R01HL1706262, NIH R01HL148190, honorarium for educational speaking/courses/seminars from Zoll Inc. Medtronic Inc. and Biosense Webster Inc., minor stock in NeuCures Inc, Ohad Ziv – nothing to declare, William-Fernando Bautista-Vargas – nothing to declare, Saurabh Kumar – nothing to declare, Narayanan Namboodiri – nothing to declare, Benhur Davi Henz – nothing to declare, Jose Montero Cabezas - Shockwave Inc- research funding, Penumbra Inc- speaker fees, Nikolaos Dagres – nothing to declare, Peichl Petr – Astra Zeneca, Promed, Abbott, Medtronic, Biotronik, Biosense Webster: speaker fees, consultancy, Frontera Antonio – Abbott, Boston Scientific, Biosense Webster: speaker fees, consultancy, Tzeis Stylianos – Bayer, Pfizer: speaker fees, consultancy, Merino Jose Luis – Sanofi Aventis, Microport, Medtronic, Milestone Pharmaceutical, Biotronik, Zoll Medical: speaker fees, consultancy, Bayer: travel and meeting support, Daiichi Sankyo : Clinical Trial participation, Principal investigator, Milestone : Clinical trial participation, Principal investigator, Abbott : Fellow support, Principal investigator, Medtronic : Fellow support, Principal investigator, Soejima Kyoko – Abbott, Daiichi Sankyo, Medtronic, Johnson and Johnson: speaker fees, consultancy, de Chillou Christian – Abbott, Boston Scientific, Biosense Webster: speaker fees, consultancy, Tung Roderick – Biotronik, Medtronic, Abbott: speaker fees, consultancy, Eckardt Lars - nothing to declare, Maury Philippe - nothing to declare, Hlivak Peter – Pfizer, Boehringer-Ingelheim, Bayer, Novo-Nordisk: speaker fees, consultancy, Tereshchenko Larisa - nothing to declare, Kojodjojo Pipin - nothing to declare Atie Jacob - Johnson & Johnson: speaker fees, consultancy, Boston Scientific: travel and meeting support., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)

Imaging plays an integral role in all aspects of managing heart disease and cardiac imaging is a core competency of cardiologists. The adequate delivery of cardiac imaging services requires expertise in both imaging methodology-with specific adaptations to imaging of the heart-as well as intricate knowledge of heart disease. The European Society of Cardiology (ESC) and the European Association of Cardiovascular Imaging have developed and implemented a successful education and certification programme for all cardiac imaging modalities. This programme equips cardiologists to provide high quality competency-based cardiac imaging services ensuring they are adequately trained and competent in the entire process of cardiac imaging, from the clinical indication via selecting the best imaging test to answer the clinical question, to image acquisition, analysis, interpretation, storage, repository, and results dissemination. This statement emphasizes the need for competency-based cardiac imaging delivery which is key to optimal, effective and efficient, patient care., (This article has been co-published with permission in the European Heart Journal, European Heart Journal – Cardiovascular Imaging, and European Heart Journal – Imaging Methods and Practice. © 2023 the European Society of Cardiology The articles are identical except for minor stylistic and spelling differences in keeping with each journal's style. Either citation can be used when citing this article.)

Background: Electrical isolation of pulmonary veins (PV) with high-power short-duration (HPSD) radiofrequency application (RFa) may reduce the duration of atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation, without compromising the procedural efficacy and safety in comparison with the conventional approach. This hypothesis has been generated in several observational studies; the POWER FAST III will test it in a randomized multicenter clinical trial., Methods: It is a multicenter randomized, open-label and non-inferiority clinical trial with two parallel groups. AF ablation using 70 W and 9-10 s RFa is compared with the conventional technique using 25-40 W RFa guided by numerical lesion indexes. The main efficacy objective is the incidence of atrial arrhythmia recurrences electrocardiographically documented during 1-year follow-up. The main safety objective is the incidence of endoscopically detected esophageal thermal lesions (EDEL). This trial includes a substudy of incidence of asymptomatic cerebral lesions detected by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) after ablation., Results: A randomized clinical trial compares for the first time high-power short-duration and conventional ablation in order to obtain data about the efficacy and safety of the high-power technique in an adequate methodological context., Conclusions: The results of the POWER FAST III could support the use of the high-power short-duration ablation in clinical practice., Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov: NTC04153747., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Background: Novel pacing technologies, such as His bundle pacing (HBP) and left bundle branch area pacing (LBBaP), have emerged to maintain physiological ventricular activation. We investigated the outcomes of LBBP with HBP for patients requiring a de novo permanent pacing., Methods and Results: Systematic review of randomized clinical trials and observational studies comparing LBBaP with HBP until March 01, 2023 was performed. Random and fixed effects meta-analyses of the effect of pacing technology on outcomes were performed. Study outcomes included pacing metrics, QRS duration, lead revision, procedure parameters, all-cause mortality and heart failure hospitalization (HFH). Overall, 10 studies with 1596 patients were included. Implant success rate was higher in LBBaP compared with HBP (RR 1.24, 95% CI: 1.08 to 1.42, p = .002). LBBaP was associated with lower capture threshold at implantation (mean difference (MD) -0.62 V, 95% CI: -0.74 to -0.51 V, p < .0001) and at follow-up (MD -0.74 V, 95% CI: -0.96 to -0.53, p < .0001), shorter procedure duration (MD -14.66 min, 95% CI: -23.54 to -5.78, p = .001) and shorter fluoroscopy time (MD -4.2 min, 95% CI: -8.4 to -0.0, p = .05). Compared with HBP, LBBaP was associated with a decreased risk of all-cause mortality (RR: 0.50, 95% CI: 0.33 to 0.77, p = .002) and HFH (RR: 0.57, 95% CI: 0.33 to 1.00, p = .05). No statistical differences were found in lead revisions and QRS duration before and after pacing., Conclusion: This meta-analysis found that LBBaP was superior to HBP regarding pacing metrics and implant success rate as an initial pacing strategy, although absence of head-to-head randomized comparison warrants caution in interpretation of the results., (© 2023 The Authors. Pacing and Clinical Electrophysiology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Aims: Electrophysiological (EP) operations that have traditionally involved long hospital lengths of stay (LOS) are now being undertaken as day case procedures. The coronavirus disease-19 pandemic served as an impetus for many centres to shorten LOS for EP procedures. This survey explores LOS for elective EP procedures in the modern era., Methods and Results: An online survey consisting of 27 multiple-choice questions was completed by 245 respondents from 35 countries. With respect to de novo cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED) implantations, day case procedures were reported for 79.5% of implantable loop recorders, 13.3% of pacemakers (PMs), 10.4% of implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs), and 10.2% of cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) devices. With respect to CIED generator replacements, day case procedures were reported for 61.7% of PMs, 49.2% of ICDs, and 48.2% of CRT devices. With regard to ablations, day case procedures were reported for 5.7% of atrial fibrillation (AF) ablations, 10.7% of left-sided ablations, and 17.5% of right-sided ablations. A LOS ≥ 2 days for CIED implantation was reported for 47.7% of PM, 54.5% of ICDs, and 56.9% of CRT devices and for 54.5% of AF ablations, 42.2% of right-sided ablations, and 46.1% of left-sided ablations. Reimbursement (43-56%) and bed availability (20-47%) were reported to have no consistent impact on the organization of elective procedures., Conclusion: There is a wide variation in the LOS for elective EP procedures. The LOS for some procedures appears disproportionate to their complexity. Neither reimbursement nor bed availability consistently influenced LOS., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest: G.B. reported small speaker fees from Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Boston, Daiichi Sankyo, Microport, Janssen, and Sanofi outside of the submitted work. R.C.-A. reported small educational speakers fees from Abbott and Boston Scientific. J.C. reports lecture fees/honoraria, educational grants Boston Scientific, Medtronic, and Biosense Webster outside of the submitted work. M.M.Z. reports lecture fees/honoraria, educational grants, and travel support by Medtronic, Boston Scientific, Bayer Vital, ZOLL CMS, and Pfizer. D.D. received modest lecture honorary fees from Abbott, Astra Zeneca, Biotronik, Boehringer Ingelheim, Boston Scientific, Bristol Myers Squibb, CVRx, Medtronic, Microport, Pfizer, and Zoll. M.M.F. reports speaker/consultation fees from Medtronic, Abbott, and ZOLL. The other authors did not report conflicts of interest to disclose outside of the submitted work., (© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)

Aims: Standardized data definitions are essential for monitoring and assessment of care and outcomes in observational studies and randomized controlled trials (RCTs). The European Unified Registries for Heart Care Evaluation and Randomized Trials (EuroHeart) project of the European Society of Cardiology aimed to develop contemporary data standards for atrial fibrillation/flutter (AF/AFL) and catheter ablation., Methods and Results: We used the EuroHeart methodology for the development of data standards and formed a Working Group comprising 23 experts in AF/AFL and catheter ablation registries, as well as representatives from the European Heart Rhythm Association and EuroHeart. We conducted a systematic literature review of AF/AFL and catheter ablation registries and data standard documents to generate candidate variables. We used a modified Delphi method to reach a consensus on a final variable set. For each variable, the Working Group developed permissible values and definitions, and agreed as to whether the variable was mandatory (Level 1) or additional (Level 2). In total, 70 Level 1 and 92 Level 2 variables were selected and reviewed by a wider Reference Group of 42 experts from 24 countries. The Level 1 variables were implemented into the EuroHeart IT platform as the basis for continuous registration of individual patient data., Conclusion: By means of a structured process and working with international stakeholders, harmonized data standards for AF/AFL and catheter ablation for AF/AFL were developed. In the context of the EuroHeart project, this will facilitate country-level quality of care improvement, international observational research, registry-based RCTs, and post-marketing surveillance of devices and pharmacotherapies., (© The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)

Background: Etripamil is a fast-acting, intranasally administered calcium-channel blocker in development for on-demand therapy outside a health-care setting for paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of etripamil 70 mg nasal spray using a symptom-prompted, repeat-dose regimen for acute conversion of atrioventricular-nodal-dependent paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia to sinus rhythm within 30 min., Methods: RAPID was a multicentre, randomised, placebo-controlled, event-driven trial, conducted at 160 sites in North America and Europe as part 2 of the NODE-301 study. Eligible patients were aged at least 18 years and had a history of paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia with sustained, symptomatic episodes (≥20 min) as documented by electrocardiogram. Patients were administered two test doses of intranasal etripamil (each 70 mg, 10 min apart) during sinus rhythm; those who tolerated the test doses were randomly assigned (1:1) using an interactive response technology system to receive either etripamil or placebo. Prompted by symptoms of paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia, patients self-administered a first dose of intranasal 70 mg etripamil or placebo and, if symptoms persisted beyond 10 min, a repeat dose. Continuously recorded electrocardiographic data were adjudicated, by individuals masked to patient assignment, for the primary endpoint of time to conversion of paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia to sinus rhythm for at least 30 s within 30 min after the first dose, which was measured in all patients who administered blinded study drug for a confirmed atrioventricular-nodal-dependent event. Safety outcomes were assessed in all patients who self-administered blinded study drug for an episode of perceived paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia. This trial is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03464019, and is complete., Findings: Between Oct 13, 2020, and July 20, 2022, among 692 patients randomly assigned, 184 (99 from the etripamil group and 85 from the placebo group) self-administered study drug for atrioventricular-nodal-dependent paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia, with diagnosis and timing confirmed. Kaplan-Meier estimates of conversion rates by 30 min were 64% (63/99) with etripamil and 31% (26/85) with placebo (hazard ratio 2·62; 95% CI 1·66-4·15; p<0·0001). Median time to conversion was 17·2 min (95% CI 13·4-26·5) with the etripamil regimen versus 53·5 min (38·7-87·3) with placebo. Prespecified sensitivity analyses of the primary assessment were conducted to test robustness, yielding supporting results. Treatment-emergent adverse events occurred in 68 (50%) of 99 patients treated with etripamil and 12 (11%) of 85 patients in the placebo group, most of which were located at the administration site and were mild or moderate, and all of which were transient and resolved without intervention. Adverse events occurring in at least 5% of patients treated with etripamil were nasal discomfort (23%), nasal congestion (13%), and rhinorrhea (9%). No serious etripamil-related adverse events or deaths were reported., Interpretation: Using a symptom-prompted, self-administered, initial and optional-repeat-dosing regimen, intranasal etripamil was well tolerated, safe, and superior to placebo for the rapid conversion of atrioventricular-nodal-dependent paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia to sinus rhythm. This approach could empower patients to treat paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia themselves outside of a health-care setting, and has the potential to reduce the need for additional medical interventions, such as intravenous medications given in an acute-care setting., Funding: Milestone Pharmaceuticals., Competing Interests: Declaration of interests BSS, PTS, BM, MC, PRK, JPP, SDP, and AJC are consultants for Milestone Pharmaceuticals. AJC has received grants and personal fees from Boehringer Ingelheim, Bayer, Pfizer, Bristol-Myers Squibb, and Daiichi Sankyo; personal fees from Medtronic, Boston Scientific, Menarini, and Biotronik; and support from Anthos, Sanofi, Abbott, GlaxoSmithKline, and Johnson & Johnson. PRK has received personal fees from Acesion Pharma, Allergan, Astellas Pharma, AstraZeneca, AtriCure, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Chattem, Correvio, Daiichi Sankyo, GlaxoSmithKline, InCarda Therapeutics, Johnson & Johnson, Medtronic, Merck, Novartis, Pfizer, Roche, and Sanofi-Aventis; serves on a data safety monitoring board for Eli Lilly; and has equity in CardioNet. SDP has received personal fees from Medtronic, Boston Scientific, Pfizer, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Philips, Zoll, and Sanofi-Aventis and research grants from Boston Scientific, Gilead Sciences, Pfizer, Bristol-Myers Squibb, the US Food and Drug Administration, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Philips, Medtronic, and Sanofi-Aventis. HH has received lecture and consultancy fees from Abbott, Biotronik, Daiichi Sankyo, Pfizer-BMS, Medscape, and Springer Healthcare and unconditional research grants through the University of Antwerp and/or the University of Hasselt from Abbott, Bayer, Biotronik, Biosense Webster, Boston Scientific, Boehringer Ingelheim, Daiichi Sankyo, Fibricheck/Qompium, Medtronic, and Pfizer-BMS, all outside of the scope of this work. JLM has received grants and personal fees from Medtronic, Microport, and Sanofi. JPP has received grants for clinical research from Abbott, the American Heart Association, the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation, Bayer, Boston Scientific, iRhythm, and Philips and serves as a consultant to Abbott, AbbVie, ARCA biopharma, Bayer, Boston Scientific, Bristol Myers Squibb (Myokardia), Element Science, Itamar Medical, LivaNova, Medtronic, ElectroPhysiology Frontiers, ReCor, Sanofi, Philips, and UpToDate. AV has received personal fees from MedLumics and Adagio Medical and research grants from Bayer, Biosense Webster, and Medtronic. JMW has received personal fees from Sanofi-Aventis, Bristol-Myers Squibb, and Janssen Pharmaceuticals and a research grant from Milestone Pharmaceuticals. PTS has equity in Milestone Pharmaceuticals. DBB, FP, and SS are employees of Milestone Pharmaceuticals. JEI, MA, BSS, PD, and AJC serve on the steering committee for Milestone Pharmaceuticals. JH declares no competing interests., (Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an Open Access article under the CC BY 4.0 license. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Background and Aims: Bayesian analyses can provide additional insights into the results of clinical trials, aiding in the decision-making process. We analysed the Substrate Ablation vs. Antiarrhythmic Drug Therapy for Symptomatic Ventricular Tachycardia (SURVIVE-VT) trial using Bayesian survival models., Methods and Results: The SURVIVE-VT trial randomized patients with ischaemic cardiomyopathy and monomorphic ventricular tachycardia (VT) to catheter ablation or antiarrhythmic drugs (AAD) as a first-line strategy. The primary outcome was a composite of cardiovascular death, appropriate implantable cardioverter-defibrillator shocks, unplanned heart failure hospitalizations, or severe treatment-related complications. We used informative, skeptical, and non-informative priors with different probabilities of large effects to compute the posterior distributions using Markov Chain Monte Carlo methods. We calculated the probabilities of hazard ratios (HR) being <1, <0.9, and <0.75, as well as 2-year survival estimates. Of the 144 randomized patients, 71 underwent catheter ablation and 73 received AAD. Regardless of the prior, catheter ablation had a >98% probability of reducing the primary outcome (HR < 1) and a >96% probability of achieving a reduction of >10% (HR < 0.9). The probability of a >25% (HR < 0.75) reduction of treatment-related complications was >90%. Catheter ablation had a high probability (>93%) of reducing incessant/slow undetected VT/electric storm, unplanned hospitalizations for ventricular arrhythmias, and overall cardiovascular admissions > 25%, with absolute differences of 15.2%, 21.2%, and 20.2%, respectively., Conclusion: In patients with ischaemic cardiomyopathy and VT, catheter ablation as a first-line therapy resulted in a high probability of reducing several clinical outcomes compared to AAD. Our study highlights the value of Bayesian analysis in clinical trials and its potential for guiding treatment decisions., Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT03734562., (© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)

Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) represents a highly heterogeneous clinical syndrome affected in its development and progression by many comorbidities. The left ventricular diastolic dysfunction may be a manifestation of various combinations of cardiovascular, metabolic, pulmonary, renal, and geriatric conditions. Thus, in addition to treatment with sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors in all patients, the most effective method of improving clinical outcomes may be therapy tailored to each patient's clinical profile. To better outline a phenotype-based approach for the treatment of HFpEF, in this joint position paper, the Heart Failure Association of the European Society of Cardiology, the European Heart Rhythm Association and the European Hypertension Society, have developed an algorithm to identify the most common HFpEF phenotypes and identify the evidence-based treatment strategy for each, while taking into account the complexities of multiple comorbidities and polypharmacy., (© 2023 European Society of Cardiology.)

Aims: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common sustained arrhythmia encountered in clinical practice. Episodes may stop spontaneously (paroxysmal AF); may terminate only via intervention (persistent AF); or may persist indefinitely (permanent AF) (see European and American guidelines, referenced below, for more precise definitions). Recently, there has been renewed interest in an approach to terminate AF acutely referred to as 'pill-in-the-pocket' (PITP). The PITP is recognized in both the US and European guidelines as an effective option using an oral antiarrhythmic drug for acute conversion of acute/recent-onset AF. However, how PITP is currently used has not been systematically evaluated., Methods and Results: The recently published Antiarrhythmic Interventions for Managing Atrial Fibrillation (AIM-AF) survey included questions regarding current PITP usage, stratified by US vs. European countries surveyed, by representative countries within Europe, and by cardiologists vs. electrophysiologists. This manuscript presents the data from this planned sub-study. Our survey revealed that clinicians in both the USA and Europe consider PITP in about a quarter of their patients, mostly for recent-onset AF with minimal or no structural heart disease (guideline appropriate). However, significant deviations exist. See the Graphical abstract for a summary of the data., Conclusion: Our findings highlight the frequent use of PITP and the need for further physician education about appropriate and optimal use of this strategy., (© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)

Sudden cardiac death and ventricular arrhythmias are a global health issue. Recently, a new guideline for the management of ventricular arrhythmias and prevention of sudden cardiac death has been published by the European Society of Cardiology that serves as an update to the 2015 guideline on this topic. This review focuses on 10 novel key aspects of the current guideline: As new aspects, public basic life support and access to defibrillators are guideline topics. Recommendations for the diagnostic evaluation of patients with ventricular arrhythmias are structured according to frequently encountered clinical scenarios. Management of electrical storm has become a new focus. In addition, genetic testing and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging significantly gained relevance for both diagnostic evaluation and risk stratification. New algorithms for antiarrhythmic drug therapy aim at improving safe drug use. The new recommendations reflect increasing relevance of catheter ablation of ventricular arrhythmias, especially in patients without structural heart disease or stable coronary artery disease with only mildly impaired ejection fraction and haemodynamically tolerated ventricular tachycardias. Regarding sudden cardiac death risk stratification, risk calculators for laminopathies, and long QT syndrome are now considered besides the already established risk calculator for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Generally, 'new' risk markers beyond left ventricular ejection fraction are increasingly considered for recommendations on primary preventive implantable cardioverter defibrillator therapy. Furthermore, new recommendations for diagnosis of Brugada syndrome and management of primary electrical disease have been included. With many comprehensive flowcharts and practical algorithms, the new guideline takes a step towards a user-oriented reference book., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest: We disclose that in the past 2 years, L.E. received lecture fees from Abbott, Bayer, Boston Scientific, Daichii Sankyo, Medtronic, Biotronik, Sanofi Aventis, Bristol Myers Squibb. K.Z. received funding from Biosense Webster for research in electrophysiology. J.L.M. received direct payment for his personal services from Sanofi Aventis, Boston Scientific, Medtronic and Microport and research funding from Abbott, Daichii Sankyo, Biotronik and Milestone, his department received payment from Biosense, Abbott, Boston Scientific, Medtronic and Biotronik. C.S. received direct payment for his personal services from Biosense Webster, Abbott, Microport, Boston Scientific, Medtronic and Biotronik, travel, and meeting support from Biotronik and research funding from Medtronic. J.T.-H. received travel and meeting support from Abbott and Medtronic and direct personal payment from Leo Pharma. N.D. and H.K. disclose that there is no possible conflict of interest., (© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)

Aims: Oesophageal fistula represents a rare but dreadful complication of atrial fibrillation catheter ablation. Data on its incidence, management and outcome are sparse., Methods and Results: This international multicenter registry investigates the characteristics of oesophageal fistulae after treatment of atrial fibrillation by catheter ablation. A total of 553,729 catheter ablation procedures (radiofrequency: 62.9%, cryoballoon: 36.2%, other modalities: 0.9%) were performed at 214 centers in 35 countries. In 78 centers 138 patients (0.025%, radiofrequency: 0.038%, cryoballoon: 0.0015% (p<0.0001)) were diagnosed with an oesophageal fistula. Periprocedural data were available for 118 patients (85.5%). Following catheter ablation, the median time to symptoms and the median time to diagnosis were 18 (7.75, 25; range: 0-60) days and 21 (15, 29.5; range: 2-63) days, respectively. The median time from symptom onset to oesophageal fistula diagnosis was 3 (1, 9; range: 0-42) days. The most common initial symptom was fever (59.3%). The diagnosis was established by chest computed tomography in 80.2% of patients. Oesophageal surgery was performed in 47.4% and direct endoscopic treatment in 19.8%, and conservative treatment in 32.8% of patients. The overall mortality was 65.8%. Mortality following surgical (51.9%) or endoscopic treatment (56.5%) was significantly lower as compared to conservative management (89.5%) (odds ratio 7.463 (2.414, 23.072) p<0.001)., Conclusions: Oesophageal fistula after catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation is rare and occurs mostly with the use of radiofrequency energy rather than cryoenergy. Mortality without surgical or endoscopic intervention is exceedingly high., (© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.)

Competing Interests: Conflict of interest: D.D. received lecture honorary, travel grants, and/or a fellowship grant from Abbott, Astra Zeneca, Bayer, Biotronik, Boehringer Ingelheim, Boston. Scientific, Bristol Myers Squibb, Medtronic, Microport, Pfizer, Zoll. D.D. is an Associate Editor of EP Europace and was not involved in the peer review process or publication decision. C.L.: none. H.P. received honoraria, travel grants, and consultation fees from Abbott, Bayer, Biosense Webster, Biotronik, Boehringer Ingelheim, Boston Scientific, Bristol Myers Squibb, Daiichi-Sankyo, Medtronic, Pfizer, Zoll. V.W. received consultant and lecture fees from Abbott, Medtronic, Biosense Webster, and Withings. S.S. received lecture honorary, travel grants, and/or fellowship grants from Abbot, Astra Zeneca, Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Medtronic, Novartis. A.L. received a moderate research grant from Abbott, and received speaker fees from Baylis Medical. Received travel grants from Biosense Webster. P.B. none. S.P., V.M., and L.T. are employees of the European Society of Cardiology. J.L.M. received speaker fees and honoraria for lectures and scientific advice from Biotronik, Medtronic, Microport, Milestone Pharmaceutical, Sanofi, and Zoll.

Cardiac computed tomography (CT) scan was performed in a 69-year-old male with atrial fibrillation radiofrequency ablation who was admitted for transcatheter angioplasty of left inferior pulmonary vein (LIPV) stenosis due to recurrent hemoptysis. CT showed complete ostial occlusion in the area of the LIPV. Occlusion of the pulmonary vein ostium is a rare complication. We describe the successful use of chronic occlusion techniques in the treatment of this patient.

Objective: The aim of this study is to propose a method to reduce the sensitivity of the estimated omnipolar electrogram (oEGM) with respect to the angle of the propagation wavefront., Methods: A novel configuration of cliques taking into account all four electrodes of a squared cell is proposed. To test this approach, simulations of HD grids of cardiac activations at different propagation angles, conduction velocities, interelectrode distance and electrogram waveforms are considered., Results: The proposed approach successfully provided narrower loops (essentially a straight line) of the electrical field described by the bipole pair with respect to the conventional approach. Estimation of the direction of propagation was improved. Additionally, estimated oEGMs presented larger amplitude, and estimations of the local activation times were more accurate., Conclusions: A novel method to improve the estimation of oEGMs in HD grid of electrodes is proposed. This approach is superior to the existing methods and avoids pitfalls not yet resolved., Relevance: Robust tools for quantifying the cardiac substrate are crucial to determine with accuracy target ablation sites during an electrophysiological procedure., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Dr. JLM reports receiving speaker fees, honoraria, consultancy, advisory board fees, investigator, committee member, etc. from Medtronic, Microport, Sanofi Aventis, Boston Scientific and Abbott, Dr. RCA reports educational talks for Abbott and Boston scientific. Drs. FC, RC, JM and Mr. SRC and IS report no disclosures., (Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

To develop a suite of quality indicators (QIs) for the management of patients with ventricular arrhythmias (VA) and the prevention of sudden cardiac death (SCD). The Working Group comprised experts in heart rhythm management including Task Force members of the 2022 European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Clinical Practice Guidelines for the management of patients with VA and the prevention of SCD, members of the European Heart Rhythm Association, international experts, and a patient representative. We followed the ESC methodology for QI development, which involves (i) the identification of the key domains of care for the management of patients with VA and the prevention of SCD by constructing a conceptual framework of care, (ii) the development of candidate QIs by conducting a systematic review of the literature, (iii) the selection of the final set of QIs using a modified-Delphi method, and (iv) the evaluation of the feasibility of the developed QIs. We identified eight domains of care for the management of patients with VA and the prevention of SCD: (i) structural framework, (ii) screening and diagnosis, (iii) risk stratification, (iv) patient education and lifestyle modification, (v) pharmacological treatment, (vi) device therapy, (vii) catheter ablation, and (viii) outcomes, which included 17 main and 4 secondary QIs across these domains. Following a standardized methodology, we developed 21 QIs for the management of patients with VA and the prevention of SCD. The implementation of these QIs will improve the care and outcomes of patients with VA and contribute to the prevention of SCD., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest: M.J.A. is a consultant for Abbott, Boston Scientific, Bristol Myers Squibb, Daichii Sankyo, Invitae, LQT Therapeutics, and Medtronic. M.J.A. and/or Mayo Clinic are involved in an equity/intellectual property/royalty relationship with AliveCor, Anumana, ARMGO Pharma, Pfizer, and UpToDate. However, none of these entities were involved in this study. T.D. receives from InHeart—Speaker honoraria, personal (< 5.000€), Siemens—Speaker Honoraria, institutional (< 5.000€), Biotronik—Educational Course Director, personal (< 10.000€), Abbott—Speaker honoraria, personal (< 5.000€) and Boston Scientific—Adverse events committee, personal (< 5.000€). CPG Chair of the Data Science Group of EuroHeart, Deputy Editor of EHJ Quality of Care and Clinical Outcomes. Unrelated to the present work: Research grants from Abbott, BMS, BHF, Horizon 2020, NIHR; speaker’s honoraria from AstraZeneca, Raisio Group, Wondr Medical; Consulting from Amgen, AstraZeneca, Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Daiichi Sankyo, Ely-Lilly, Menarini, Vifor outside the submitted work., (© The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Despite marked progress in the management of atrial fibrillation (AF), detecting AF remains difficult and AF-related complications cause unacceptable morbidity and mortality even on optimal current therapy. This document summarizes the key outcomes of the 8th AFNET/EHRA Consensus Conference of the Atrial Fibrillation NETwork (AFNET) and the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA). Eighty-three international experts met in Hamburg for 2 days in October 2021. Results of the interdisciplinary, hybrid discussions in breakout groups and the plenary based on recently published and unpublished observations are summarized in this consensus paper to support improved care for patients with AF by guiding prevention, individualized management, and research strategies. The main outcomes are (i) new evidence supports a simple, scalable, and pragmatic population-based AF screening pathway; (ii) rhythm management is evolving from therapy aimed at improving symptoms to an integrated domain in the prevention of AF-related outcomes, especially in patients with recently diagnosed AF; (iii) improved characterization of atrial cardiomyopathy may help to identify patients in need for therapy; (iv) standardized assessment of cognitive function in patients with AF could lead to improvement in patient outcomes; and (v) artificial intelligence (AI) can support all of the above aims, but requires advanced interdisciplinary knowledge and collaboration as well as a better medico-legal framework. Implementation of new evidence-based approaches to AF screening and rhythm management can improve outcomes in patients with AF. Additional benefits are possible with further efforts to identify and target atrial cardiomyopathy and cognitive impairment, which can be facilitated by AI., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest: RBS has received lecture fees and advisory board fees from BMS/Pfizer outside this work and has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the grant agreement No 648131, from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the grant agreement No 847770 (AFFECT-EU) and German Center for Cardiovascular Research (DZHK e.V.) (8121710103); German Ministry of Research and Education (BMBF 01ZX1408A) and ERACoSysMed3 (031L0239).EAM is employee of Daiichi Sankyo Europe GmbH producing and marketing an oral anticoagulant (edoxaban). EA has received consulting / speaker fees for Biosense Webster. GB has received speaker's fees of small amount from Boston, Bayer, Daiichi, Boehringer. SB is consultant for Medtronic, Boston Scientific, Microport, and Zoll. JC has received consulting fees / honoraria fees from Acesion, Allergan, Alta Thera, Arca, lncarda, Menarini, Milestone, Sanofi, Bayer, Daiichi Sankyo, Pfizer, Abbott, Biosense Webster, Biotronik, Boston Scientific, Lilly, Medtronic, Johnson and Johnson. BC has received in kind contribution for research Support from iRhythm. WC has received advisory board fees for Roche Diagnostics AG. MDM is employee of Medtronic. SZB has received fees as member of Advisory Board in Bristol Myers Squibb-Pfizer. DD has received fees from Abbott, Astra Zenica, Bayer, Bosten Scientific, Bristol Myers Squibb-Pfizer, Medtonic, Zoll. LE has received lecture Honoria from Medtronic, Biotronik, Boston Scientific, Boehringer Ingelheim, Daiichy Sankyo, Bayer, MMS, Pfizer, Sanofi and received research grants from DFG and DGK. CE is employee of Preventicus GmbH. LF has received institutional research grants and non-financial support from European Union, DFG, British Heart Foundation, Medical Research Council (UK), NIHR, and several biomedical companies. The Institute of Cardiovascular Research, University of Birmingham, has received an Accelerator Award by the British Heart Foundation M/18/2/34218. LF is listed as inventor of two patents held by University of Birmingham (Atrial Fibrillation Therapy WO 2015140571, Markers for Atrial Fibrillation WO 2016012783). BF receiving fees from Bristol-Myers Squibb and Pfizer Alliance, Bayer, Daiichi Sankyo, Omron. (largely speaker fees and travel support for speaking at session or official satellites of large international/continental society meetings) and investigator-initiated research grants to the institution from Bristol-Myers and Squibb and Pfizer Alliance and Ownership / Employee of Nil. LG and AZ are employees of Roche Diagnostics International Ltd. AG has received funding from Daiichi Sankyo, Astra Zenica, Bayer, Bristol Myers Squibb-Pfizer, Viola, Medtonic, Berlin Charitè. JHS has received Advisory board fees in Medtronic and Speaker fee from Medtronic. KGH has received fees from Abbott, Alexion, AMARIN, AstraZeneca, Bayer, Biotronik, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol-Myers-Squibb, Daiichi Sankyo, Edwards Lifesciences, Medtronic, Pfizer, Premier Research, SUN Pharma and W. L. Gare & Associates and Research Grants from Bayer Vital, Sanofi-Aventis. JSH received fees from Boston Scientific, Servier, Bayer, Myokardia, Bristol-Myers-Squibb, Pfizer, and research grants from Medtronic, Boston Scientific, Bristol-Myers-Squibb, Abbott. HH has received lecture and consultancy fees from Abbott, Biotronik, Bristol-Myers-Squibb- Pfizer, Medscape, Daiichi Sankyo, Springer Healthcare Ltd and receive un conditional research grants through the Univerity of Antwerp and/or University of Hasselt from Abbott, Bayer, Biotronik, Biosense-Webster, Fibrickeck/Qompium, Medtronic, Bristol-Myers-Squibb- Pfizer, Boston Scientific, Daiichi Sankyo and Boehringer Ingelheim. RH has received speacker fees from BI, Bayer and Bristol-Myers-Squibb- Pfizer and AZ. TH is CEO of Preventicus GmbH. DK has received funding from Bayer, AtriCure, Protherics Medicines Development and Myokardia and Research grant from rants from the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR CDF-2015-08-074 RATE-AF; NIHR HTA-130280 DaRe2THINK; NIHR EME- 132974 D2T-NV), the British Heart Foundation (PG/17/55/33087 and AA/18/2/34218), EU/EFPIA IMI (BigData@Heart 116074),the European Society of Cardiology supported by educationalgrants from Boehringer Ingelheim/BMS-Pfizer Alliance/Bayer/Daiichi Sankyo/Boston Scientific, the NIHR/the University of Ox- ford Biomedical Research Centre, and British Heart Foundation/ the University of Birmingham Accelerator Award (STEEER-AF NCT04396418), Amomed Pharma, and IRCCS San Raffaele/Menarini (beta-blockers in Heart Failure Collaborative Group NCT0083244). MK is employee of Bristol-Myers and Squibb. CL has received fees from medtonic, Boston Scientific, Biotronik and Bristol-Myers and Squibb- Pfizer and research grants from Rennes Univerity, Metronik, Biotonik and Boston Scientific. DL has received research grant for EHRA-PATHS, NovoNordisk Young Investigator Award. MLL has received lecture fees from Bristol-Myers and Squibb and research grant from H2020 AFFECT-EU (grant No. 847770). SM has received research grant from Daiichi Sankyo (EPDAURUS IIT) and Bristol-Myers and Squibb (APPROACH ACS AF IIT). JLM has received Abbott, Boston Scientific, Biotronik, Boehringer Ingelheim, Sanofi, Microport and received research grants from Medtronic, Abbott, Microport, Biosense. RM is employee of Medtronic. LM is Stockholder for Galgomedical and Corify and receiving consuting fees from Abbott, Biosense-Webster, Bosten Scientific, Medtronik and receiving research grants from Abbott, Biosense-Webster, Bosten Scientific, Medtronik. LN has received consulting fees from Bristol-Myers and Squibb- Pfizer. GP is employee of Bayer AG. HP has received consulting fees from Abbott, Biosense-Webster, Bosten Scientific, Medtronik and receiving research grants from Abbott, Bayer, Biosense-Webster, Bosten Scientific, Medtronik, Bristol-Myers and Squibb- Pfizer. MR has received consulting fees for Medtonic, Arca BiopharmaInc, Roche and received research grants from Dutch Heart Foundation: RACE V, RED-CVD, CVON-AI, DECISION studies; grant from SJM/Abbott to institution: VIP-HF study; Grant for Medtronic to institution: Cryoballoon AF registry/biobank study. The other authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.LR has received research grants from Canadian Insititute of Health research and Byer Inc. U.S. received consultancy fees or honoraria from Università della Svizzera Italiana (USI, Switzerland), Roche Diagnostics (Switzerland), EP Solutions Inc. (Switzerland), Johnson & Johnson Medical Limited, (United Kingdom), Bayer Healthcare (Germany). U.S. is co-founder and shareholder of YourRhythmics BV, a spin-off company of the University Maastricht and Research grant from the Dutch Heart Foundation (CVON RACE V, CVON2014–09) European Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Program granted to MS under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant agreement #813716 (TRAIN-HEART Innovative Training Network), and various other programs of the European Union granted to US (ITN Network Personalize AF: Personalized Therapies for Atrial Fibrillation: a translational network – grant #860974; CATCH ME: Characterizing Atrial fibrillation by Translating its Causes into Health Modifiers in the Elderly – grant #633196; MAESTRIA: Machine Learning Artificial Intelligence Early Detection Stroke Atrial Fibrillation – grant #965286; REPAIR: Restoring cardiac mechanical function by polymeric artificial muscular tissue – grant #952166). DS has received consultation fees from Biosense Webster, Abbott, Boston Scientific, Consultant with stock option: SentiAR, Arga Medtech. RS is employee of Daiichi Sankyo Europe GmbH. DS has received consultation fees from Boston Scientific, Abbott and Research grant from Biosense Webster. ES has received lecture fees from Bayer, Bristol-Myers and Squibb- Pfizer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Johnson & Johnson, Merck Sharp & Dohme and Sanofi. DT has received lecture fees from Bayer Vital, Bristol-Myers and Squibb- Pfizer, Daiichi Sankyo, Medtonic, Zoll CMS, Sanofi, St. Jude Medical and research grant from Daiichi Sankyo. MTH is employee/owner of American Foundation of women's Health /StopAfib.org and employee/owner of True Hills Inc.. BV is employee of Bayer AG. RW has received consultation fees from Boston Scientific, Biotronic, Pfizer, Daiichi Sankyo, Bayer, Adagio Medical and Research grant from Bristol-Myers and Squibb- Pfizer, Boston Scientific. CW has received consulation fees from Biotronik, Boston Scientific, Novartis and research grant from BMBF, AFNET, DZHK, Biotronik. MW is employee and shareholder of Sanofi. SW has received Consulting fees from Boston Scientific, Abbott, Bayer, Bristol-Myers and Squibb- Pfizer, Boehringer Ingelheim and research grant from Boston Scientific. HW is employee and stockholder of Pfizer Germany. MDZ has received advisory and speaker fee from Bristol-Myers and Squibb- Pfizer. PK reports grants and non-financial support from BMBF (German Ministry of Education and Research), grants from Sanofi and Abbott, grants and non-financial support from EHRA (European Heart Rhythm Association), and grants from German Heart Foundation and DZHK (German Center for Cardiovascular Research), during the conduct of the study, and grants from European Union, British Heart Foundation, Leducq Foundation, Medical Research Council (UK), and non-financial support from German Centre for Heart Research, outside the submitted work; in addition, P.K. has a patent Atrial Fibrillation Therapy WO 2015140571 issued to University of Birmingham and a patent Markers for Atrial Fibrillation WO 2016012783 issued to University of Birmingham., (© The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of European Society of Cardiology.)

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common arrhythmia which places a significant bur-den on individuals as well as the healthcare system. AF management requires a multidisciplinary approach in which tackling comorbidities is an important aspect., Aims: This study aimed to evaluate how multimorbidity is currently assessed and managed and to determine if interdisciplinary care is undertaken., Methods: A 21-item online survey was undertaken over four weeks as part of the EHRA-PATHS study examining comorbidities in AF and distributed to European Heart Rhythm Association members in Europe., Results: A total of 341 eligible responses were received, of which 35 (10%) were from Polish physi-cians. Compared to other European locations, the rates of specialist services and referrals varied but were not significantly different. However, there were higher numbers of specialized services reported in Poland compared to the rest of Europe for hypertension (57% vs. 37%; P = 0.02) and palpita-tions/arrhythmias (63% vs. 41%; P = 0.01), whereas rates of sleep apnea services and comprehensive geriatric care tended to be lower (20% vs. 34%; P = 0.10 and 14% vs. 36%; P = 0.01, respectively). The only statistical difference in reasons for referral rates between Poland and the rest of Europe was the barrier relating to insurance and financial reasons (31% vs. 11%; P <0.01, respectively)., Conclusions: There is a clear need for an integrated approach to patients with AF and associated comorbidities. Preparedness of Polish physicians to deliver such care seems to be similar to other European countries but may be hampered by financial obstacles.