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.