Acupuncture antiarrhythmic effects on drug refractory persistent XXXX : study protocol for a randomized, controlled trial.

@entity1 @entity943 @entity955
Background. @entity955 (AF) is the most common form of @entity943 . Several trials have suggested that acupuncture may prevent AF. However, the efficacy of acupuncture for AF prevention has not been well investigated. Therefore, we designed a prospective, two-parallel-armed, @entity1 and assessor blinded, randomized, sham-controlled clinical trial to investigate acupuncture in persistent AF (ACU-AF). Methods. A total of 80 @entity1 will be randomly assigned to active acupuncture or sham acupuncture groups in a 1   :   1 ratio. Both groups will take the same antiarrhythmic medication during the study period. @entity1 will receive 10 sessions of acupuncture treatment once a week for 10 weeks. The primary endpoint is AF recurrence rate. Secondary endpoints are left atrium (LA) and left atrial appendage (LAA) changes in function and volume, and inflammatory biomarker changes. Ethics. This study protocol was approved by the institutional review boards (IRBs) of Kyung Hee University Hospital (number 1335-04). This trial is registered with clinicaltrials.gov NCT02110537.
