Objective To explore the effects of drug therapy and catheter ablation on ventricular rate and recovery rate in patients with atrial fibrillation.

Methods From December 2012 to September 2013, 165 patients with atrial fibrillation admitted to Zhongshan Hospital Affiliated to Fudan University were randomly divided into two groups. The occurrence of atrial fibrillation symptoms, changes of sinus rhythm maintenance rates at 1, 3, 6 and 12 months, and the occurrence of endpoint events were recorded and compared.

Results The recurrence rate of atrial fibrillation symptoms in the study group (39.5%) was lower than that in the control group (66.7%, P < 0.05). The sinus rhythm maintenance rates of the study group were higher than those of the control group (94.0%, 75.0%, 67.9%, and 53.4%) after 1 month (96.3%), 3 months (90.1%), 6 months (85.2%), and 12 months (77.8%, P < 0.05). There was no significant difference in the incidence of endpoint events between the study group (8.6%) and the control group (10.7%, P>0.05).

Conclusions The clinical effect of catheter ablation in the treatment of atrial fibrillation is significantly better than that of drug therapy, which can significantly reduce the recurrence rate of clinical symptoms, improve the maintenance of sinus rhythm and improve the quality of life of patients.