Abstract 13888: Impact of Atrial Fibrillation Ablation on Recurrent Cardiovascular Hospitalizations

Introduction: Atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation has been shown to improve quality of life in AF patients, however, its impact on healthcare resource utilization is not well established. We sought to evaluate the impact of AF ablation on cardiovascular hospitalizations as a surrogate for resource utilization. Methods: We retrospectively included consecutive patients undergoing AF ablation at our multi-hospital healthcare system (2013 - 2020). Hospital admissions were assessed in the 12-month period preceding the ablation procedure (or from the time of AF diagnosis, if AF was diagnosed <12 months before ablation), and up to 24 months post-ablation. In each patient, pre- and post-ablation hospitalization rates were compared using paired t-test. Results: We included 4,310 patients who underwent AF ablation in our hospital system. Mean age was 63 ± 10 years, 65.5% were males, and mean CHA2DS2-VASc was 2.1 ± 1.5. AF ablation was associated with a statistically significant reduction in the total number of hospitalizations (0.7 ± 1.9 admission per person-year pre-ablation vs. 0.3 ± 0.7 post-ablation, P<0.001), total number of cardiovascular hospitalizations (0.7 ± 1.2 admission per person-year pre-ablation vs. 0.2 ± 0.6 post-ablation, P<0.001), total number of AF-related hospitalizations (0.6 ± 1.1 admission per person-year pre-ablation vs. 0.1 ± 0.4 post-ablation, P<0.001), and total number of hospital admission days (2.2 ± 4.8 days per person-year pre-ablation vs. 1.3 ± 4.9 post-ablation, P<0.001). The percentage of patients who had a cardiovascular hospitalization during each quarter (3-month period) of the pre- and post-ablation study period are shown in the Figure. Conclusions: In a large multi-hospital US healthcare system, AF ablation was associated with a significant reduction in the rates of hospitalization, including total, cardiovascular and AF-related hospitalizations, which may have significant implications for healthcare resource utilization.