Cardiac impact of R-wave triggered irreversible electroporation therapy

Abstract

Background: Irreversible electroporation (IRE) is a novel tumor ablative therapy technique, using electric fields to induce apoptosis in target tissues. Whether these electric pulses of high field strength can cause cardiac damage and/or ablation-induced arrhythmias is unclear.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to systematically evaluate the safety of electrocardiogram (ECG)-gated IRE with regard to cardiac side effects.

Methods: In all patients, 12-lead ECG and signal-averaged ECG (SAECG) recordings were performed before and after IRE and 24-hour Holter recording on the day of the IRE procedure. Venous blood samples (N-terminal pro-brain-type natriuretic peptide [NT-proBNP], high-sensitive troponin I [hsTnI]) were obtained before and 4 and 16 hours after the procedure. Patients with abnormal findings were reevaluated after 3 months.

Results: In total, 26 patients with an oncologic indication for IRE (11 females, mean age 62.9 years) were prospectively enrolled. Nine patients (34.6%) showed an increase in hsTnI and 21 patients (80.8%) an increase in NT-proBNP after ablation. Fifteen patients (57%) developed arrhythmias related to the procedure. One patient, in whom hsTnI and NT-proBNP had increased, developed multiple, nonsustained ventricular tachycardia events. In another patient, atrial fibrillation was triggered twice in 2 separate procedures. Twelve patients had clinically benign arrhythmias. SAECG was negative in all patients.

Conclusion: Subclinical myocardial injury and nonfatal cardiac arrhythmias can occur in the context of IRE treatment. Although no sustained cardiac injuries could be found at 3-month follow-up, we propose implementation of a cardiac safety algorithm consisting of cardiac biomarkers and ECG monitoring when IRE is conducted.

Keywords: Arrhythmia; Cardiac biomarker; Cardiac safety algorithm; Electrocardiographic monitoring; High-sensitive troponin I; Irreversible electroporation; Myocardial injury; N-terminal pro–brain-type natriuretic peptide; Tumor ablation.