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Atrial FibrillationSAVE STROKE IINCT06783868

Assessing the Neurological Outcomes After Atrial Fibrillation Ablation for Rhythm Control

An observational study of Atrial Fibrillation and Stroke, run by Kansas City Heart Rhythm Research Foundation at 7 sites in United States.

Not yet recruiting

Opening soon. The study is approved but enrolment has not started yet. Sites may already take enquiries.

Sites and contacts
Official record
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Trial summary

A prospective, non-blinded, multi-center study to assess the impact of early Catheter Ablation (CA) in patients with a new diagnosis of Atrial Fibrillation(AF) at the time of stroke. 100 patients will be enrolled. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 years and older
Conditions the study is for
Atrial Fibrillation, Stroke
What is being tested?
Catheter Ablation and Market-approved AVNB, OAC and AAD
How many people
100 participants
Where
7 sitesUnited States
Study dates
Oct 2025to Jun 2027
Phase
Observational
Are there results?
Not yet: the study is under way

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 18 years and older
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult, Older adult

Study population: Patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) and recent stroke.

Who may be able to join

  • Ages >18 and able to provide consent.
  • Presenting with an acute stroke and new-onset AF
  • Modified RANKIN score (mRS) < 6
  • Must be able to undergo some form of cardiac monitoring [implantable loop recorder (ILR), electrocardiogram (ECG), Holter monitor] to quantify AF burden

Who cannot join

  • Patients < 18 years of age
  • Unable to provide consent, including mRS = 6.
  • Not able to read and write at an 8th-grade level [to complete AFEQT and EQ-5D surveys]
  • Positive B-hCG
  • Will not follow up with our practice/clinic afterward.
  • Cannot tolerate OAC or AAD for any reason.
  • Cannot undergo CA for any reason.

Trial locations and contacts

7 sites in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.

Donita Atkins contact

816-651-1969

datkins@kchrf.com

7 sites in 1 country

United States7 sites
  • Centerpoint Medical Center Clinic

    Independence, Missouri, 64057

  • Centerpoint Medical Center

    Independence, Missouri, 64057

  • Research Medical Center Clinic

    Kansas City, Missouri, 64032

  • Research Medical Center

    Kansas City, Missouri, 64032

  • Menorah Medical Center

    Overland Park, Kansas, 66209

  • Kansas City Heart Rhythm Institute - Roe Clinic

    Overland Park, Kansas, 66211

  • Overland Park Regional Medical Center

    Overland Park, Kansas, 66215

Other trials in United States

About this study

Official title: Randomized Control Study to Assess the Neurological Outcomes After Atrial Fibrillation Ablation for Rhythm Control vs Routine Medication Therapy in Patients With Recent Stroke: SAVE STROKE Phase II Study

A prospective, non-blinded, multi-center study to assess the impact of early Catheter Ablation (CA) in patients with a new diagnosis of Atrial Fibrillation(AF) at the time of stroke. 100 patients will be enrolled.

Read the detailed description

A prospective, non-blinded, multi-center study to assess the impact of early CA in patients with a new diagnosis of AF at the time of stroke. At least 100 patients who meet the inclusion and exclusion criteria will be randomized 1:1 to receive early CA or SOC (Standard of Care). The primary outcome will be the functional neurologic outcomes, including mRS (modified Rankin Scale) and QOL(Quality of Life), recurrence, major bleeding, and mortality after stroke for each group. Secondary outcomes will be changes in cognitive assessment, success of rhythm control, recurrent hospitalizations, and cumulative cardiovascular outcomes. Participants will be followed at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months following the discharge date to measure these outcomes, and the study will enroll for one year. The primary endpoints will be functional recovery and enrollment.

Being tested
Catheter Ablation, Market-approved AVNB, OAC and AAD
Medical subject headings
Atrial Fibrillation, Stroke

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • Catheter AblationDevice

    Catheter Ablation is commonly performed with radiofrequency or cryotherapy to maintain a rhythm control strategy if patients can no longer tolerate their symptoms or are no longer controlled on AVNB or AAD. The procedure leads to significant symptom improvement even though there may be insignificant AF recurrence at one year. At Kansas City Heart Rhythm Institute, CA may be performed with radiofrequency ablation (Tactiflex Ablation Catheter, Abbott Cardiovascular, Minneapolis, MN) or pulsed field ablation (PulseSelectTM, Abbott Cardiovascular or FaraWaveTM, Boston Scientific, Marlborough, MA), performed with EnsiteX (Abbott Cardiovascular) or Carto3 (Biosense Webster, Irvine, CA) mapping software.

  • Market-approved AVNB, OAC and AADDrug

    Used per protocol for the duration of the trial.

Study groups in NCT06783868
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Routine Medication TherapyWill receive SOC following AF diagnosis in the setting of stroke. This includes rate control with a combination of atrioventricular nodal blockers (AVNB) (Metoprolol, Diltiazem, etc.) and initiation of oral anticoagulation (OAC) (either Eliquis, Xarelto, or Warfarin) within 1-14 days per recommendations of the Stroke Team. If arrhythmia remains uncontrolled, patients will be started on an anti-arrhythmic drugs (AAD) (either Flecainide, Dofetilide, Propafenone, Sotalol, Amiodarone, etc.) per Electrophysiology. Doses of medications will be determined by the managing physician. If a patient was/is started or on triple therapy, this will be converted to appropriate anti-platelet and OAC. Patients will continue this management if AF is controlled. Patients can still undergo CA for rhythm control at the discretion of the managing Electrophysiologist.
Receives: Drug: Market-approved AVNB, OAC and AAD
Atrial Fibrillation AblationWhen randomized to this group, patients will subsequently receive earlier rhythm control. They will undergo SOC following AF diagnosis in the setting of stroke as above. This can include AVNB and OAC. However, these patients will also be assigned to start AAD before discharge from the hospital. They will subsequently undergo CA 30-120 days from discharge from the hospital. The lesions to be ablated will be determined by electrophysiology study (EPS) with electroanatomic mapping and subsequently selected by the operator to optimize each patient situation.
Receives: Device: Catheter Ablation

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Functional neurologic outcome - Modified Rankin Scale

    Modified Rankin Scale is widely used to assess neurologic dysfunction in a broad range of neurologic and neurosurgical conditions. It is a 6-level ordinal outcome scale (0-5) used to assess the functional status of patients, encoding the range from no symptoms or functional impairment (mRS = 0) to severe disability requiring constant nursing care (mRS = 5)

    Measured: 1 Month, 3 Months, 6 Months, 9 Months and 12 Months

  2. Recurrent Stroke

    A recurrent stroke is when a person has another stroke following their first stroke. Experiencing one can have a major impact on a person's quality of life.

    Measured: 12 Months

Secondary outcomes (1)
  1. Functional neurologic outcome - Quality of Life

    The AF Effect on Quality-of-Life questionnaire - AFEQT for short - is a reliable and responsive measure of quality of life, developed especially for atrial fibrillation. Overall or subscale scores range from 0-100.

    A score of 0 corresponds to complete disability (or responding "extremely" limited, difficult or bothersome to all questions answered), while a score of 100 corresponds to no disability (or responding "not at all" limited, difficult or bothersome to all questions answered).

    Measured: 1 Month, 3 Months, 6 Months, 9 Months and 12 Months

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted20 Jan 2025
  2. Study startOct 2025 (estimated)
  3. Primary completionJun 2027 (estimated)
  4. Study completionJun 2027 (estimated)

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Observational
Observational model
Case-control
Time perspective
Prospective
Enrolment
100 participants (estimated)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT06783868
Sponsor's protocol ID
KCHRRF_SAVE STROKE II_0037
Acronym
SAVE STROKE II
Status last verified
Mar 2025
First submitted
14 Jan 2025
Last updated
28 Aug 2025
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
Yes
FDA-regulated device
Yes

Publications

  • About Stroke. 2023

  • What is Atrial Fibrillation.2023

  • Roman S, Patel K, Hana D, Guice KC, Patel J, Stadnick C, Basta A, Khouzam RN. Rate versus rhythm control for atrial fibrillation: from AFFIRM to EAST-AFNET 4 - a paradigm shift. Future Cardiol. 2022 Apr;18(4):354-353. doi: 10.2217/fca-2021-0034. Epub 2022 Mar 8.

    PubMed 35255732
  • Kirchhof P, Camm AJ, Goette A, Brandes A, Eckardt L, Elvan A, Fetsch T, van Gelder IC, Haase D, Haegeli LM, Hamann F, Heidbuchel H, Hindricks G, Kautzner J, Kuck KH, Mont L, Ng GA, Rekosz J, Schoen N, Schotten U, Suling A, Taggeselle J, Themistoclakis S, Vettorazzi E, Vardas P, Wegscheider K, Willems S, Crijns HJGM, Breithardt G; EAST-AFNET 4 Trial Investigators. Early Rhythm-Control Therapy in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation. N Engl J Med. 2020 Oct 1;383(14):1305-1316. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2019422. Epub 2020 Aug 29.

    PubMed 32865375
  • Bunch TJ, Crandall BG, Weiss JP, May HT, Bair TL, Osborn JS, Anderson JL, Muhlestein JB, Horne BD, Lappe DL, Day JD. Patients treated with catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation have long-term rates of death, stroke, and dementia similar to patients without atrial fibrillation. J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol. 2011 Aug;22(8):839-45. doi: 10.1111/j.1540-8167.2011.02035.x. Epub 2011 Mar 15.

    PubMed 21410581
  • Park J, Shim J, Lee JM, Park JK, Heo J, Chang Y, Song TJ, Kim DH, Lee HA, Yu HT, Kim TH, Uhm JS, Kim YD, Nam HS, Joung B, Lee MH, Heo JH, Pak HN; RAFAS Investigators*. Risks and Benefits of Early Rhythm Control in Patients With Acute Strokes and Atrial Fibrillation: A Multicenter, Prospective, Randomized Study (the RAFAS Trial). J Am Heart Assoc. 2022 Feb;11(3):e023391. doi: 10.1161/JAHA.121.023391. Epub 2022 Jan 19.

    PubMed 35043663
  • Jensen M, Suling A, Metzner A, Schnabel RB, Borof K, Goette A, Haeusler KG, Zapf A, Wegscheider K, Fabritz L, Diener HC, Thomalla G, Kirchhof P. Early rhythm-control therapy for atrial fibrillation in patients with a history of stroke: a subgroup analysis of the EAST-AFNET 4 trial. Lancet Neurol. 2023 Jan;22(1):45-54. doi: 10.1016/S1474-4422(22)00436-7.

    PubMed 36517170
  • Turagam MK, Musikantow D, Whang W, Koruth JS, Miller MA, Langan MN, Sofi A, Choudry S, Dukkipati SR, Reddy VY. Assessment of Catheter Ablation or Antiarrhythmic Drugs for First-line Therapy of Atrial Fibrillation: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials. JAMA Cardiol. 2021 Jun 1;6(6):697-705. doi: 10.1001/jamacardio.2021.0852.

    PubMed 33909022

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

An observational study of Atrial Fibrillation and Stroke, run by Kansas City Heart Rhythm Research Foundation at 7 sites in United States.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 4 inclusion and 7 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: opening soon, as of the sponsor's last update on 28 Aug 2025. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 7 sites in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

Are results available for this study?

This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

Contact Donita Atkins (816-651-1969, datkins@kchrf.com), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Functional neurologic outcome - Modified Rankin Scale (time frame: 1 Month, 3 Months, 6 Months, 9 Months and 12 Months). The study lists 2 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT06783868, which also lists 8 linked publications.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 28 Aug 2025.

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