[Pulmonary vein orifice cryoablation for atrial fibrillation with mitral valve disease using a specially designed cryo-probe].

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the effectiveness of pulmonary vein orifice cryoablation (PVOC) for atrial fibrillation during mitral valve surgery. METHODS: Twenty-two patients (12 men and 10 women) with mitral valve disease complicated with atrial fibrillation have been treated by PVOC since March 2000. During the mitral valve operations, all four pulmonary vein orifices were ablated using a ball-shaped cryo-probe. A newly designed cryo-probe was used for the last seven patients. Success was defined as atrial defibrillation within 6 months after the operation. RESULTS: The success rate was 72.7% (16/22) of all patients, and improved from 66.6% to 85.7% (6/7) in the patients treated with the new cryo-probe. The mean left atrial dimension was smaller (50.2 +/- 4.1 vs. 61.5 +/- 9.4 mm, p < 0.01), and the duration of atrial fibrillation was also shorter (27.2 +/- 42.8 vs. 138.0 +/- 95.6 months, p < 0.01) in the successful group. CONCLUSIONS: PVOC with mitral valve surgery is a simple and less invasive procedure, so could be an effective option for atrial fibrillation.