Carbon footprint of atrial fibrillation catheter ablation.
Geoffroy DitacPierre Jean CottinetMinh-Quyen LEDaniel GrinbergJosselin DuchateauKévin GardeyArnaud DulacAntoine DelinièreChristelle HaddadJulie Boussuge-RozeFrédéric SacherPierre JaisPhilippe ChevalierFrancis BessièrePublished in: Europace : European pacing, arrhythmias, and cardiac electrophysiology : journal of the working groups on cardiac pacing, arrhythmias, and cardiac cellular electrophysiology of the European Society of Cardiology (2022)
AF catheter ablation involves a mean of 76.9 kg of CO2-e. With an estimated 600 000 annual worldwide procedures, the environmental impact of AF catheter ablation activity is estimated equal to 125 tons of CO2 emission each day. It represents an equivalent of 700 000 km of car ride every day. Electrophysiology catheters and patches are the main contributors of the carbon footprint. The focus must be on reducing, reusing, and recycling these items to limit the impact of AF ablation on the environment. A road map of steps to implement in different time frames is proposed.