Prophylactic colchicine therapy after ablation in AF fails to reduce incident pericarditis
A study published in JACC: Clinical Electrophysiology entitled "Prophylactic Colchicine After Radiofrequency Ablation of Atrial Fibrillation: The PAPERS Study" by a team of researchers has suggested that there is no benefit associated with postprocedural prophylactic colchicine therapy following atrial fibrillation or AF ablation. This study randomized 139 patients to either standard of care or colchicine treatment after radiofrequency ablation for AF to investigate the risks and benefits associated with the prophylactic use of colchicine to prevent Pericarditis (post-AF ablation). They found no significant difference in the incidence of post-ablation pericarditis between the treatment groups (10.6% vs 9.6%). They reported a higher rate of gastrointestinal discomfort in the colchicine group.
They concluded that Prophylactic colchicine therapy initiated after the ablation procedure in AF patients did not affect the incidence of post-ablation Pericarditis and is tied to an increased incidence of GI side effects.
It is already known that Pericarditis is common after radiofrequency ablation for atrial fibrillation. There needs to be more data on prevention strategies and, thus, significant heterogeneity in practice regarding colchicine use.
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