Procedure
Procedures were performed under general anesthesia and were started by a
detailed diagnostic electrophysiology study aimed to determine the
arrhythmia substrate and evaluate its characteristics. The specificities
in terms of technique, catheter choice, source of energy, use of 3D
guided technology, and ablation settings differed depending on each
individual case, resources availability and expert’s preference. For the
cryoablation procedures, the catheter used was Freezor
XtraTM (8FR, 6mm tip) (Medtronic Inc., Minneapolis,
MN, USA). For the radiofrequency procedures, the catheter of choice in
>80% of the procedures was a bidirectional DF Thermocool
Smarttouch catheter (Biosense Webster, Diamond; Bar, CA, US)