Arrhythmias & electrophysiologyResearch article
Offsetting costs of new ablation technologies with increased procedural efficiency and volume
- Univariable and multivariable linear regression analyses
- 3 United States (US) hospitals
- real-world
Authors' conclusion
Use of a lattice DE is associated with AF ablation efficiency improvements sufficient to perform additional procedure volume that partially offsets increased technology costs. OTW PFA was associated with increased cost and insufficient efficiency improvements to allow for increased procedure volume.
Study context
- Population
- Patients aged ≥18 years undergoing pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) for atrial fibrillation (AF) in 3 US hospitals between January 1, 2024, and November 14, 2025of 3173 PVI procedures, met inclusion and exclusion criteria
- Participants
- 2,986 patients
- Comparison
- Procedure time and costs across radiofrequency (RF), over-the-wire (OTW) pulsed field ablation (PFA) and lattice dual energy (DE) platforms
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Unadjusted procedure time (minutes)
- Shorter with lattice DE compared with RF or OTW PFA
- P < 0.001 for both comparisons
- No difference in median procedure time for OTW PFA compared with RF
- P = 0.12
Further findings
| Outcome | Estimate | P value |
|---|---|---|
| Median procedure time, multivariable analysis — lattice DE vs RF · IQR −33 to −28; reduction compared with RF · multivariable analysis | difference −31 minutes/case | P < 0.001 for both comparisons |
| Median procedure time, multivariable analysis — OTW PFA vs RF · IQR −12 to −5; reduction compared with RF · multivariable analysis | difference −9 minutes/case | P < 0.001 for both comparisons |
| Cost per case — OTW PFA vs RF · IQR $3413-$3884; increased cost compared with RF · independently associated | difference $3600 per case | P < 0.001 for comparison. |
| Cost per case — lattice DE vs RF · IQR $4327-$4611; increased cost compared with RF · independently associated | difference $4469 per case | P < 0.001 for comparison. |
Original publication
Offsetting costs of new ablation technologies with increased procedural efficiency and volume. Heart Rhythm. Published 23 April 2026. doi:10.1016/j.hrthm.2026.03.1907
Summarised from the published abstract; every number is checked against it