Left Atrial Appendage Velocity as a Predictor of Atrial Fibrillation After Cardiac Surgery

Objective: To determine if there is an association between left atrial appendage velocity and the development of postoperative atrial fibrillation (POAF).

Design: Single institution retrospective study performed between January 2013 and December 2013.

Setting: Single-institution, university hospital.

Participants: Five hundred sixty-two adult patients undergoing cardiac surgery utilizing cardiopulmonary bypass.

Interventions: No interventions for the purpose of this study.

Measurements and main results: Left atrial appendage velocity, measured by transesophageal echocardiogram, ranged from 8 cm/sec to 126 cm/sec. The development of POAF within the first 3 days after cardiac surgery was 38.3%. The authors found that patients with a lower left atrial appendage velocity had a higher risk of developing POAF. In the adjusted logistic regression model, there was an 11% decrease in the odds of POAF for each 10-unit (cm/sec) increase in the left atrial appendage velocity (p = 0.044).

Conclusions: Decreasing left atrial appendage velocity is an independent predictor of risk for the development of POAF following cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass.