Atrial Fibrillation (AF) is the most common arrhythmia associated with a variety of cardiovascular conditions and increased rates of stroke, death. Its treatment is still widely debated due to the large variety of therapeutic options and there remains uncertainty about the health impact of using ablation and its place in therapy. In this study, only the ablation strategies aimed to control cardiac rhythm in patients with AF are evaluated.   

We aim to provide scientific and objective evidence to healthcare providers and patients to help their decision about rhythm control treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF) by detail following objectives. The specific objectives of this study were (1) to evaluate comparative clinical effectiveness and safety of catheter ablation (CA) and other treatment strategies(AADs therapy, surgical procedures, cardioversion) for controlling rhythm of patients with atrial fibrillation through systematic review, (2) to describe basic information about burden of disease and rhythm control treatment pattern for patients with AF in Korea and (3) to compare healthcare outcomes of catheter ablation and surgical procedures in patients with AF using national health insurance claims data in Korea.