Early cardioversion of atrial fibrillation facilitated by transesophageal echocardiography: short-term safety and impact on maintenance of sinus rhythm at 1 year

BACKGROUND: For patients presenting with atrial fibrillation of only a few weeks duration, the use of transesophageal echocardiography offers the opportunity to markedly abbreviate the duration of atrial fibrillation before cardioversion. We sought to determine if the shorter duration of atrial fibrillation allowed by a transesophageal echocardiography strategy had an impact on the recurrence of atrial fibrillation and prevalence of sinus rhythm during the first year following cardioversion. METHODS: Transesophageal echocardiography was attempted in 539 patients (292 men, 247 women; 71.6 ± 13.0 years.) with atrial fibrillation ≥2 days (66.1%