Project:

Randomized clinical trial on efficacy and safety of administration of aldosterone antagonist on top of the conventional treatment for reducing the recurrence of atrial fibrillation to patients, suffered paroxysmal or persistent atrial fibrillation, converted to sinus rhythm

Project leader: Assoc. Prof. Yoto Yotov, MD, PhD

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a multifactorial disease with important health consequences. AF is associated with structural remodeling. It is demonstrated that aldosterone is the hormone that stimulates myocardial fibrosis.

The main project purpose is to assess the level of myocardial fibrosis by measuring galectin-3 and to find out whether the treatment with the mineralcorticoid receptor blocker aldosterone antagonist, as antifibrotic agent, will lead to reducing the myocardial fibrosis and, thus, reducing the recurrence of AF. The probable prognostic variables for relapse of AF or for cardio-vascular events will be assessed in 100 patients more than 55 years of age without history of cardiovascular diseases and with restored sinus rhythm after an episode of AF.

The fibrotic process assessment using the biomarker galectin-3 would give new evidence about the correlation between the structural remodeling and the frequency of recurrence of AF.