Clinical Research Directory

Patient Selection and Long-Term Outcomes of Pace & Ablate Strategy in Atrial Fibrillation

Atrioventricular node ablation with permanent pacing (the "pace-and-ablate" strategy) controls ventricular rate in atrial fibrillation that has not responded to drug therapy or catheter ablation. Chronic right ventricular pacing, however, can cause pacing-induced cardiomyopathy (PICM), and it is not well established which patients are at risk and should therefore receive conduction system pacing or biventricular pacing instead. REPACE is a multicentre retrospective cohort of consecutive patients who underwent atrioventricular node ablation from January 2011 onwards at five centres in Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Poland: Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital, Inselspital Bern, University Hospital Basel, Geneva University Hospitals and the Silesian Centre for Heart Diseases, Zabrze. More than 2,000 patients ablated up to March 2024 have been included to date; patients ablated after that date at the participating centres are being added. The study has three aims: to validate, in an independent multicentre population, a previously published risk model for pacing-induced cardiomyopathy; to describe the procedural technique and outcomes of atrioventricular node ablation across different health systems; and to estimate the health-economic impact of the pace-and-ablate strategy. Pacing-induced cardiomyopathy is defined as an absolute reduction in left ventricular ejection fraction of at least 10 percentage points to a value below 50%. All potential endpoints are adjudicated by a clinical events committee blinded to the classification made at the site.

Pacing Advancements With Cost and Experience VALuation for Unified Patient-Led Clinical Evidence - the PACEVALUE Study

The PACEVALUE study is a large, international observational study aiming to improve the treatment of patients receiving cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs) such as pacemakers, implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs), and cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) devices. While these devices are vital for managing heart rhythm disorders and heart failure, chronic right ventricular pacing can sometimes cause a condition called pacing-induced cardiomyopathy (PICM), where the left side of the heart weakens over time, leading to increased hospitalizations and higher mortality. The main goal of the study is to develop and validate a risk prediction model using routine clinical and device data to identify patients at highest risk of PICM before device implantation. By stratifying patients according to this risk score, the study aims to guide personalized pacing strategies, including conduction system pacing (CSP) and CRT options, to improve outcomes and reduce complications. The study will include approximately 4,500 patients across centers in Switzerland, Germany, Poland, Croatia, Bulgaria, Cyprus, and Australia, with planned inclusion of sites in the UK. Patients are included in two arms. In the prospective arm, consecutive patients are enrolled at the time of their device procedure. In the retrospective arm, centers include patients they have already treated, using data already recorded during clinical care. Both arms use the same case report form and the same endpoint definitions. Participants are followed annually for up to ten years, with data collection including heart function imaging, device data, clinical outcomes, patient-reported outcomes (PROMs/PREMs), and healthcare costs. This observational study will also compare clinical practices and cost-effectiveness of different pacing strategies across diverse healthcare systems, aiming to inform evidence-based, patient-centered, and economically efficient device therapy decisions. The findings will lay the groundwork for future registry-based randomized controlled trials to further optimize pacing treatments.

Study of LX2006 Gene Therapy in Friedreich Ataxia Cardiomyopathy

The purpose of Study LX2006-03, a multicenter, Phase 2, open-label, randomized, controlled study, is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of LX2006 gene therapy in participants with Friedreich ataxia (FA) cardiomyopathy (CM).

Gene Therapy for Cardiomyopathy Associated With Friedreich's Ataxia

This is a Phase 1/2, open-label, dose-ascending, multicenter study of the safety and efficacy of LX2006 for participants who have Friedreich's Ataxia with evidence of cardiomyopathy. The study will evaluate up to three doses of single administration of LX2006 (AAVrh.10hFXN), an adeno-associated virus (AAV) gene therapy designed to intravenously deliver the human frataxin (hFXN) gene to cardiac cells over a 52-week period. Long-term safety and efficacy will be evaluated for an additional 4-years for a total of 5-years post LX2006 treatment.