Backgrounds This study was to report the initial experiences of the technique of fusion of either MSCT or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with three-dimensional (3-D) electroanatomic mapping (CartoMerge) to guide circumferential pulmonary vein ablation (CPVA) for the treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF). Methods Fifty-five patients [42 men, mean age (SS + 14) years] with symptomatic drug-refractory AF underwent MRI or 64-slice MSCT 1 to 3 days prior to the ablation procedure. Using the new CartoMerge?Image Integration Module, 3-D anatomic images of the left atrium (LA) and pulmonary veins (PVs) derived from MRI/MSCT were established and fused with the electroanatomic map. The end-point of CPVA was abolish or dissociation of pulmonary vein potentials (PVPs). Results MRI and 64-slice MSCT was performed in 30 and 25 patients, respectively. A mean of (49±13) mapping points was used to establish the electroanatomic model of the LA/PVs. In all patients, MRI/MSCT images could be fused with the 3-D electroanatomic map. Mean distance between the mapping points and the MRI/MSCT surfaces ranged from (1.16±0.89) mm to (2.20±1.76) mm.Conclusions Integration of MRI/MSCT image and the 3-D electroanatomic mapping is a useful tool to facilitate ablation procedure for AF. However, the accuracy of the fusion procedure is dependent on the precision of electroanatomic mapping.
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