What is the primary endpoint of AVNRT ablation?

• A. Ablation of slow pathway
• B. No AH jump
• C. 1 echo beats
• D. Non-inducibility

Answer: (A)

The key idea is that AVNRT relies on conduction through the slow pathway to sustain the reentrant circuit. The primary aim of ablation is to destroy or sufficiently modify the slow pathway so that this reentrant loop can no longer be formed. By targeting the slow pathway, you remove the substrate that enables AVNRT, giving the procedure its main endpoint.

In practice, clinicians look for evidence that dual AV nodal physiology has been eliminated or reduced (for example, loss of the AH jump), and that AVNRT can no longer be induced. Those findings support that the slow pathway has been effectively ablated, but the fundamental objective is the ablation of the slow pathway itself. Transient signs like a lack of inducibility or absence of an AH jump are important confirming signs, not the primary target.