Australia set to launch first atrial fibrillation registry

A new national clinical quality registry aimed at improving patient outcomes and addressing disparities in access to atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation is being launched with $7 million in funding secured through the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF).

Spearheaded by Professor Peter Kistler, Head of Electrophysiology at The Alfred, the Australian Registry for the Ablation of Atrial Fibrillation (AuRA-AF) will unite 50 leading clinicians, researchers, and healthcare partners across Australia. The initiative is supported by Monash University’s Centre of Cardiovascular Research and Education in Therapeutics (CCRET), a recognised leader in registry science.

Affecting more than 500,000 Australians and causing over 200,000 hospital admissions annually, AF is an irregular heartbeat caused by erratic electrical impulses in the heart. Catheter ablation – currently the most effective treatment – offers life-changing benefits for many patients. Yet, the procedure remains complex and marked by significant variation in outcomes, often linked to differences in clinician training and experience.

“The vision for this registry is grounded in equity and partnerships – forged specifically to transform the safety and quality of AF care, and to address the unacceptable variation in access to ablation services we see currently,” said Professor Kistler, speaking on behalf of the investigator team.

“This represents a major change in our ability to work together in a coordinated and rigorous way to achieve better outcomes for the half a million Australians with AF – some of whom are only in their 20s or 30s when first diagnosed.”

Joining Professor Kistler as Clinical Leads are Professor Jonathan Kalman (University of Melbourne) and Professor Prashanthan Sanders (University of Adelaide), both long-standing champions for advancing AF care through research and clinical excellence.

The project also aims to confront stark inequities in access to ablation services. First Nations Australians are 1.8 times less likely to undergo the procedure. Access also remains limited for women, rural residents, and people in socioeconomically disadvantaged areas. In response, the registry will include First Nations representation on the Steering Committee and establish a dedicated First Nations Committee to guide its work.

By capturing standardised clinical data and integrating patient-reported outcome measures, the registry will empower clinicians to benchmark their performance and identify opportunities for improvement. It will also support cost-effectiveness analyses and serve as a research platform to accelerate clinical trial translation into practice.

Cardiologist-researcher Professor Dion Stub, Co-Director of Monash University’s CCRET and Data Custodian of the registry, said “We’ve seen clinical quality registries deliver measurable improvements in patient outcomes across a range of disciplines and diseases such as coronary artery and valvular heart disease.

“It’s fantastic to see the sheer number of partners uniting on this registry, which will help us rapidly engage with ablation providers to contribute their data and propel us towards national coverage as soon as possible.”

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