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During the last decade, several case series and small reports have indicated that pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) in combination with renal denervation (RDN) may increase the rate of atrial fibrillation (AF) freedom in patients with hypertension. We aimed to provide a contemporary systematic overview on the techniques, and the efficacy/safety of RDN on AF recurrence, and the current landscape of ongoing investigation. The recent Evaluate Renal Denervation in Addition to Catheter Ablation to Eliminate Atrial Fibrillation (ERADICATE-AF) trial has demonstrated convincingly that among patients with paroxysmal AF and poorly controlled (but not “resistant”) hypertension, RDN added to catheter ablation, compared with catheter ablation alone, significantly increased the likelihood of freedom from AF at 12 months. RDN has proven to be a unique, effective and safe interventional therapy for the management of AF. Future investigation will likely focus on confirming current findings; expanding the population of eligible patients (eg., non-hypertensives, well controlled hypertensives); determining long-term maintenance of effect and therapeutics.

Background Patients with type 2 diabetes present with an accelerated atherosclerotic process. Animal evidence indicates that dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors (gliptins) have anti-inflammatory and anti-atherosclerotic effects, yet clinical data are scarcely available. Design and methods A prospective, randomized, open-label study was performed in 60 patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) and type 2 diabetes, who participated in a cardiac rehabilitation program. After a washout period of 3 weeks, patients were randomized in a 2:1 ratio to receive combined vildagliptin/metformin therapy (intervention group: n = 40) vs. metformin alone (control group: n = 20) for a total of 12 weeks. Blinded assessment of interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß, the primary endpoint), hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), and high sensitivity C reactive protein (hsCRP), were performed at baseline and after 12 weeks. Results Mean age of study patients was 67 ± 9 years, 75% were males, and baseline HbA1c and inflammatory markers levels were similar between the two groups. At 12 weeks of follow up, levels of IL-1ß, hsCRP, and HbA1c were significantly lower in the intervention group as compared with the control group. There was a continuous elevation of IL-1ß among the control group, which was not observed in the intervention group (49 vs. 4%, respectively; p Conclusion The addition of vildagliptin to metformin treatment in patients with type 2 diabetes and CAD led to a significant suppression of the IL-1ß elevation during follow up. A significant relative reduction of hsCRP and HbA1c in the intervention group was also observed. Trial registration NCT01604213