Localization of the origin of the atrioventricular junctional rhythm induced during selective ablation of slow-pathway conduction in patients with atrioventricular node reentrant tachycardia

During radiofrequency catheter ablation of slow atrioventricular node pathway conduction in patients with atrioventricular node reentrant tachycardia, an atrioventricular junction rhythm is frequently observed. The origin and relation to ablation success of this junctional rhythm was examined in this study. By using standard intracardiac electrophysiology techniques, we studied the radiofrequency energy-induced atrioventricular junctional rhythm in 43 consecutive patients with atrioventricular node reentrant tachycardia undergoing selective ablation of slow-pathway conduction. The frequency of atrioventricular junctional activity was correlated with successful and unsuccessful attempts at ablation of slow-pathway conduction. Also, we compared the sequence of retrograde atrial activation of radiofrequency energy-induced atrioventricular junctional beats in a subgroup of 22 patients with the retrograde activation sequence observed during pacing from the right ventricular apex and the site of successful ablation of slow-pathway conduction. A total of 201 radiofrequency-energy applications was delivered in 43 patients with > or = 5 atrioventricular junctional beat(s) induced during 110 (55%) of 201 ablation attempts. Atrioventricular junctional activity was noted during 98% of successful ablations but only 43% of the unsuccessful attempts (sensitivity, 98%; specificity, 57%; negative predictive value, 99%). The mean time to appearance of atrioventricular junctional beats was 8.8 +/- 4.1 sec (mean +/- SD) after the onset of radiofrequency-energy application. In 22 (100%) of 22 patients in whom detailed atrial mapping was performed, the retrograde atrial activation sequence of the radiofrequency-induced atrioventricular junctional beats was earliest in the anterior atrial septum, identical to that seen during pacing from the right ventricular apex. Earliest retrograde atrial activation was at the posterior septum in all patients during pacing from the successful ablation site, a markedly different activation pattern compared with that seen during either radiofrequency ablation or ventricular pacing. Whereas the occurrence of atrioventricular junctional activity during radiofrequency ablation does not necessarily herald a successful ablation of slow atrioventricular node pathway conduction, its absence strongly suggests that the energy is being applied in an unsuccessful fashion. Furthermore, it appears that radiofrequency energy-induced atrioventricular junctional beats originate not from the endocardium in contact with the ablating catheter tip but instead appear to exit remotely from the anterior atrial septal region. This finding supports the existence of specialized tissues in the atrioventricular junction that preferentially transmit the effects of radiofrequency energy to an anterior exit site, possibly identical to the atrial exit site of the retrograde fast atrioventricular node conduction pathway.