2.1 Study patients
Included in our study were 55 patients with AF (38 men and 17 women who ranged in age from 35 to 85 years). Forty-seven of the patients had PerAF, and 8 had paroxysmal AF (PAF). All had undergone LAPWI after PVI at either Nihon University Itabashi Hospital or Kawaguchi Municipal Medical Center between August 2019 and June 2020. For 12 of the 55 patients (4 with PerAF and 8 with PAF), LAPWI had been performed due to AF recurrence after PVI. For the purpose of the study, we divided the patients into 2 groups: those for whom first-pass LAPWI was successful without acute LAPW reconnection (n = 33, Successful first-pass group) and those for whom first-pass LAPWI was not successful and/or acute LAPW reconnections were seen (n = 22, Gap group). The study was approved by Nihon University Itabashi Hospital Clinical Research Judging Committee and Kawaguchi Municipal Medical Center Ethics Committee.