Objective:

Outcomes associated with isolated epicardial left atrial appendage (LAA) exclusion in atrial fibrillation (AF) patients with a contraindication or intolerance to anticoagulation are not clearly defined, especially in patients with prior stroke. This study evaluated the perioperative safety, medication use, and stroke outcomes for isolated thoracoscopic LAA exclusion for stroke prevention.

Methods:

A single-center retrospective study was performed of adults undergoing isolated thoracoscopic LAA exclusion with an epicardial exclusion device without a concomitant surgical procedure. Descriptive statistics were performed.

Results:

Twenty-five patients met the inclusion criteria. The cohort was 68% male (n = 17) with a mean age of 76.4 ± 6.5 years, a mean preoperative CHA₂DS₂-VASc score of 4.2 ± 1.4, and a mean preoperative HAS-BLED score of 2.68 ± 1.03. Seventeen patients (68%) had nonparoxysmal AF. There were 11 patients with intolerance of anticoagulation due to intracranial hemorrhage (44%), 6 due to gastrointestinal bleeding (24%), and 4 due to genitourinary bleeding (16%). All procedures were performed thoracoscopically with 100% technical success—the mean LAA stump length was 5.5 ± 2.3 mm on intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography. The median hospital length of stay was 2 (interquartile range [IQR] 1, 6.5) days. The median follow-up time was 430 (IQR 125, 972) days. During follow-up, 1 patient with cerebral angiopathy had temporary neurologic deficits at an outside institution, with brain imaging showing no evidence of ischemic injury. There were no other thromboembolic events over the 38.8 postoperative patient-years examined. All patients were off anticoagulation at last follow-up.

Conclusions:

This study shows the perioperative safety, technical success, freedom from anticoagulation, and stroke outcomes of isolated thoracoscopic LAA exclusion in patients with AF at high risk for thromboembolic disease.

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