Statistical analysis
The data are presented as frequencies and percentages for qualitative
variables and means ± standard deviations for quantitative variables. To
compare the two groups, Mann-Whitney U tests were used for continuous
variables, and χ2 tests or Fisher exact tests were
used for categorical variables.
Kaplan-Meier analysis was performed
to assess the time required for recurrence of AF. The AF-free survival
was compared by log-rank test. Statistical analyses were performed using
SPSS 23.0 software (Chicago, IL, USA). For all analyses, a P-value of
<0.05 was considered statistically significant.