Abstract
BACKGROUND: Left atrial appendage (LAA) closure has been an alternative to oral anticoagulation (OAC) for stroke prevention in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). OBJECTIVES: To report the first results of an initial multicenter experience in Brazil and to investigate the feasibility, safety, and efficacy of LAA closure with the new LAmbre device. METHODS: We collected procedural and follow-up data of 51 consecutive patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation, restrictions for long-term OAC and suitable anatomy that underwent LAA closure with the LAmbre device in 18 centers in Brazil. Procedural indications were significant bleeding under OAC (47.1%), stroke or persistent LAA thrombus despite OAC (27.5%), bleeding plus stroke (17.6%), other clinical contraindications for OAC (5.9%), and patient's choice due to sports practice (1.9%). RESULTS: Twenty-five men (49%) and 26 women (51%), with a mean age of 76±7.7 years, mean CHA2DS2-VASc score of 4.6± 1.7 and mean HAS-BLED score of 3.4± 1.1 were studied. Procedural success rate was 100%. Procedure-related immediate complications were pericardial effusion in two patients, and immediate device embolization in one case. No large residual shunts (> 5 mm) were observed, and small shunts (<5mm) were detected in four patients by color Doppler at the end of the procedure. After a mean follow-up of 18 ± 12 months, there were no deaths, strokes nor any other major complications. CONCLUSION: LAA occlusion with the LAmbre device was safe and effective in this small case series. Despite these encouraging initial results, the small number of cases warrants further studies with longer-term follow-up.