Caroline Espersen - PhD Scholarship 2023
Project summary:
Coronary computed tomography angiography prior to catheter ablation in patients with atrial fibrillation
Can screening for coronary artery disease improve catheter ablation outcomes in patients with atrial fibrillation?
This project seeks to investigate the prevalence and implications of subclinical coronary artery disease in patients with atrial fibrillation undergoing ablation and the effect of targeted anti-ischemic treatment on post-ablation outcomes.
Project Title
Coronary computed tomography angiography prior to catheter ablation in patients with atrial fibrillation
Background
Although catheter ablation is a common and effective treatment for symptomatic atrial fibrillation, ablation success rates vary widely and can be difficult to predict in individual patients. Several studies have linked coronary artery disease to an increased risk of atrial fibrillation development and recurrence. However, it is currently unknown whether active screening for coronary artery disease and subsequent treatment can improve clinical outcomes after catheter ablation.
Aim
The aim of this PhD-project is to:
1. Investigate the prevalence of known and subclinical coronary artery disease in patients with atrial fibrillation undergoing ablation and the association with atrial fibrillation recurrence based on data from the Danish registries.
2. Assessing the feasibility of the newly implemented CT protocol at Gentofte Hospital prior to ablation that enables visualization of the coronary arteries in addition to atrial mapping prior to ablation.
3. Investigate whether screening and subsequent treatment of subclinical coronary artery disease in patients with atrial fibrillation undergoing catheter ablation can reduce the recurrence of atrial fibrillation after ablation in the large, randomized, controlled trial “Coronary computed tomography angiography prior to catheter ablation in patients with atrial fibrillation - The FIBCAG trial”.
Methods
The project will be carried out partly by analyzing data from the Danish national registries as well as retrospective analyses of the currently implemented CT-protocol prior to ablation that enables visualization of the coronary arteries in addition to the atria, and lastly by initiating a randomized controlled trial.
Caroline Espersen
- MD
- University of Copenhagen, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health
- Medical Sciences Copenhagen University Hospital - Herlev and Gentofte, Department of Cardiology
Main supervisor:
Tor Biering-Sørensen, Professor, MD, PhD, MPH, MSc, Center for Translational Cardiology and Pragmatic Randomized Trials, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, Copenhagen University & Research Director, Cardiovascular Non-Invasive Imaging Research Laboratory, Department of Cardiology, Copenhagen University Hospital – Herlev & Gentofte Hospital
Co-supervisors:
Arne Johannessen, MD, DMSc, Department of Cardiology, Copenhagen University Hospital – Herlev & Gentofte Hospital, Hellerup
Jim Hansen, MD, DMSc, Department of Cardiology, Copenhagen University Hospital – Herlev & Gentofte Hospital, Hellerup
Kristian Eskesen, MD, PhD, Department of Cardiology, Copenhagen University Hospital – Herlev & Gentofte Hospital, Hellerup
Allan Zeeberg Iversen, MD, PhD, Department of Cardiology, Copenhagen University Hospital – Herlev & Gentofte Hospital, Hellerup
Raúl San José Estépar, Associate Professor, MSc, PhD, Applied Chest Imaging Laboratory, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA.