A Comparative Study of Thoracoscopic Left Atrial Appendage Clipping vs. Stapled Resection

In a single-center series of 502 patients who underwent thoracoscopic ablation and left atrial appendage closure, of whom 333 had preoperative and postoperative computed tomographic imaging, complete left atrial appendage closure (defined as residual stump <1 cm on computed tomography one year postoperatively) was lower with the stapled resection (83 percent) compared with a clip (96 percent), and the residual left atrial appendage stump depth was greater (5.3 vs 2.9 mm, respectively). Two patients with a residual stump experienced an ischemic stroke during follow-up.