In the world of constant change, technology improvement, and aging population, the treatment and diagnosis of atrial fibrillation has improved. The main reason is that there are more and more people with atrial fibrillation, which means that more data is available. So, we decided to list some new atrial fibrillation treatment and diagnosis options which are worth knowing and considering.
New Atrial Fibrillation Treatment and Diagnosis Options
SK Channels
The Centre for Human Drug Research (CHDR) in the Netherlands has conducted the first double-blind, placebo-controlled single ascending dose study to determine the safety of a new drug called AP30663. The drug is based on inhibition of SK Channels while avoiding the deleterious effects on the ventricles. Hence, this is a completely new approach to atrial fibrillation treatment which promises a higher tolerability profile and safety. However, when this drug will be available hasn’t been published yet.
New Biomarker in Ablation
Patients who were admitted to The Johns Hopkins Hospital for atrial fibrillation were used as data for a study. This study used heart imagining to predict the benefit or futility of catheter ablation. Besides the fact that a more randomized and controlled trial is necessary to determine whether someone would benefit from catheter ablation, the study indicates that there might actually be a way of showing it. So, this doesn’t only save money and prevent complications but also reduces patients’ trauma and discomfort they experience when going through a 3rdor 4th ablation.
CardioInsight Noninvasive 3D Mapping System
Mapping is usually done by inserting a mapping catheter into the heart and then locating the origin of a patient’s arrhythmia. However, with the brand-new CardioInsight system, there will be a 252-electrode sensor vest is put on a patient. It is a noninvasive technology which creates a 3-D electro-anatomic map of the heart. Additionally, the vest offers continuous and simultaneous panoramic mapping of both atria or both ventricles, which wasn’t possible with current methods.
General Practitioners
This might sound surprising, but general practitioners have become better at diagnosing and treating atrial fibrillation. The fact that there has been a rise of 40.1% of patients with atrial fibrillation who were being prescribed anticoagulants from 2000 to 2016 shows that GPS have become better at identifying and treating patients with atrial fibrillation.
Genome-Wide Association Study
The Genome-wide association study, or GWAS, has accessed data from more than one million individuals to discover the unknown genetic risk factors for atrial fibrillation. It was conducted by the University of Michigan and it helped scientists to identify 151 candidate genes for atrial fibrillation. This study was the first step towards discoveries which could trigger better prevention and treatment of atrial fibrillation.
Smart watches Can Detect Atrial Fibrillation
Another huge surprise is that a smartwatch can automatically detect atrial fibrillation, especially with the specifically designed App for the Apple Watch. The researchers of the UC San Francisco have demonstrated that the smartwatch can detect atrial fibrillation and any other arrhythmia. What’s more, the user isn’t required to do anything as the condition will be diagnosed with this device, even when there are no symptoms what so ever. This is another huge breakthrough which could lead to smart watches becoming as sensitive as a criterion-standard ECG in the future.
Zio XT Wireless Patch
iRhythm has created the Zio XT wireless patch which can diagnose atrial fibrillation by monitoring electrocardiogram(ECG) readings through the skin and looking for signs of arrhythmia. This high-tech wireless patch will probably increase the rates of atrial fibrillation diagnosis and faster initiation of anticoagulants.