A Comparison of Outcome in Patients With Preoperative Atrial Fibrillation and Patients in Sinus Rhythm

Atrial fibrillation preoperatively is associated with a higher incidence of postoperative complications. This arrhythmia is an important variable that appears to have been excluded from the current risk stratification systems. Our experience suggests that AF should be considered in the development/update of risk-stratifying methodologies to improve the predictive accuracy.