Atrial Arrhythmias after Cardiothoracic Surgery

Atrial tachyarrhythmias early in the recovery period after cardiothoracic surgery are common; they develop in 11 to 40 percent of patients after coronary-artery bypass grafting 1 – 3 and in over 50 percent of patients after valvular surgery. 2 Technical advances in surgery and anesthesia, as well as changing methods of myocardial protection, have not decreased the incidence of postoperative atrial tachyarrhythmias. 1 , 3 , 4 Although such arrhythmias have been thought of as transient and benign, they may have important consequences. Atrial fibrillation, flutter, and tachycardia are related forms of atrial tachyarrhythmia that may coexist in patients after cardiothoracic surgery and have similar clinical . . .