Imaging Modality to Guide Left Atrial Appendage Closure: Current Status and Future Perspectives

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common cardiac arrhythmia in adults. The left atrial appendage (LAA) is the most likely source of thrombus formation in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). Left atrial appendage closure (LAAC) represents an effective alternative to NOAC in pati...

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Published inJournal of clinical medicine Vol. 12; no. 11; p. 3756
Main Authors Laterra, Giulia, Dattilo, Giuseppe, Correale, Michele, Brunetti, Natale Daniele, Artale, Claudia, Sacchetta, Giorgio, Pistelli, Lorenzo, Borgi, Marco, Campanella, Francesca, Cocuzza, Federica, Lo Nigro, Maria Claudia, Contarini, Marco
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Switzerland MDPI AG 30.05.2023
MDPI
Subjects
Anticoagulants
Atrial fibrillation
Blood clots
Care and treatment
Catheters
Clinical medicine
Computer-assisted surgery
Diagnostic imaging
Embolisms
FDA approval
Heart
Medical imaging
Meta-analysis
Methods
Review
Stroke
Success
Surgery
Italy
United States > US
atrial fibrillation
left atrial appendage (LAA)
intracardiac echocardiography
NOAC
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Summary:Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common cardiac arrhythmia in adults. The left atrial appendage (LAA) is the most likely source of thrombus formation in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). Left atrial appendage closure (LAAC) represents an effective alternative to NOAC in patients with NVAF. Expert consensus documents recommend intraprocedural imaging by means of either transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) or intracardiac echocardiography (ICE) in addition to standard fluoroscopy to guide LAAC. TEE-guided LAAC usually requires general anesthesia. The ICE technique is a "minimalist approach", without general anesthesia, but ICE imaging techniques are not yet simplified and standardize, and the ICE may result in inferior image quality compared with that of TEE. Another "minimalist approach" can be the use of ICE via the esophageal route (ICE-TEE), that jet is validated to identify the presence of LAA thrombi in patients and to perform other procedures. In our cath laboratory ICE-TEE to guide LAAC is used in some complex patients. Indeed, our single center experience suggests that ICE-TEE could be a good alternative imaging technique to guide LAAC procedure without general anesthesia.
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ISSN:2077-0383
2077-0383
DOI:10.3390/jcm12113756