A cardiologist who specializes in the treatment of atrial fibrillation (AFib) at Dartmouth Health's Heart and Vascular Center at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center served as lead author on a study published in the December issue of American Heart Journal on the risk of dementia among patients with AFib treated with catheter ablation versus anti-arrhythmic drugs. Catheter ablation is a procedure in which catheters are guided into the heart through the leg veins to burn or freeze small areas of the heart to reduce the risk of abnormal heart rhythms.
The study, headed by Emily P. Zeitler, MD, MHS, found that catheter ablation was associated with significantly lower risk of dementia compared to treatment with anti-arrhythmic drugs only.
"AFib and dementia independently are a growing concern with the aging of our population," said Zeitler. "Through this study, we sought to better understand the complex relationship between AFib and dementia by exploring how treatment type for AFib plays a role in the development of dementia, and how clinicians might reduce this risk. Catheter ablation, as a course of AFib treatment, may reduce this risk."
AFib is the most common type of cardiac arrhythmia, or irregular heartbeat, and impacts nearly 40 million people worldwide, and 6 million people in the United States alone. Cases of AFib are expected to increase to 16 million by 2050 in the U.S. AFib is associated with significant cardiovascular comorbidity, including multiple forms of brain injury such as stroke, cognitive impairment and dementia. Dementia in particular is a profound issue, with more than 10.5 million Americans predicted to be affected by 2050. Historically, dementia in patients with AFib was attributed to multiple strokes; however, studies have shown that AFib is associated with multiple forms of dementia, even in the absence of stroke.
According to Zeitler's study, AFib patients treated with catheter ablation had a 41 percent lower risk of dementia compared with those treated with anti-arrhythmic drugs. Reduced risk of dementia was observed among both subgroups of men and women. The reduction in the risk for dementia associated with catheter ablation versus AAD for women was 40 percent; in men, it was 45 percent.
To view the study in full, visit the ScienceDirect website.
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Dartmouth Health, New Hampshire’s only academic health system and largest private employer, serves patients across New England. Dartmouth Health provides access to more than 2,300 providers in nearly every area of medicine, delivering care at its flagship hospital, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) in Lebanon, NH. Its network of hospitals, outpatient centers, clinics and home care facilities, spans a broad geographical area. Year after year, DHMC is named the #1 hospital in New Hampshire by U.S. News & World Report, and is consistently recognized for high performance in numerous clinical specialties and procedures. Dartmouth Health includes Dartmouth Cancer Center, northern New England’s only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers and one of less than than 60 total nationally; Dartmouth Health Children’s, which includes the state’s only children’s hospital (Children’s Hospital at DHMC/CHaD) and more than 20 locations around the region; eight member hospitals in Lebanon, Keene, Claremont, Hampstead, and New London, NH, and Windsor and Bennington, VT; Dartmouth Health Home Care; Dartmouth Health Connected Care Center for Telehealth, serving patients as far away as Texas; and more than 30 primary and multi-specialty clinics across New Hampshire and Vermont. Through its partnership with Dartmouth College, Dartmouth’s Geisel School of Medicine and the White River Junction VA Medical Center, Dartmouth Health trains nearly 400 medical residents and fellows annually and performs cutting-edge research and clinical trials with international impact. Dartmouth Health and its more than 16,000 employees are committed to serving the healthcare needs of everyone in the communities it serves and to providing every patient with exceptional, state-of-the-art, personalized care. Learn more at dartmouth-health.org.