ECHOCARDIOGRAPHIC PREDICTORS OF POSTOPERATIVE ATRIAL FIBRILLATION

Highlights Postoperative atrial fibrillation is a common complication after heart surgery. In the presented study, the analysis of data of patients with postoperative atrial fibrillation (158 patients) compared with patients without arrhythmia revealed a statistically significant (p < 0.05) difference in the size of the left atrium, end-diastolic size of the left ventricle, the left ventricular ejection fraction, the wall thickness of the left ventricle, the value of systolic pressure in the pulmonary artery and significant regurgitation on the mitral the valve. A preoperative echocardiogram can help predict the development of arrhythmia in the postoperative period. Abstract Background. Postoperative atrial fibrillation is a common complication after heart surgery. The arrhythmia occurs more often during the first five days after surgery, with a peak between 24 and 72 hours, and rarely after the first week. A change in the deformation of the left atrium cavity is associated with atrial fibrosis and may predict the risk of developing a new AF. Aim. To identify echocardiographic predictors of newly diagnosed postoperative atrial fibrillation in patients who underwent open-heart surgery for any indication. Methods. The study included patients operated in the Cardiac Surgery Department No. 2 of the State Medical Research Institute-KKB No. 1 of Krasnodar in the period from January 1, 2020 to January 1, 2021. During the analyzed period of time, open heart surgery was performed in 1 503 patients, 158 of whom had newly diagnosed postoperative atrial fibrillation (10.5%). Results. In the presented study, the analysis of data of patients with postoperative atrial fibrillation compared with patients without arrhythmia revealed a statistically significant (p < 0.05) difference in the size of the left atrium, end-diastolic size of the left ventricle, the left ventricular ejection fraction, the wall thickness of the left ventricle, the value of systolic pressure in the pulmonary artery and significant regurgitation on the mitral the valve Conclusion. Echocardiography is currently the main non-invasive tool for the analysis of cardiac function in the preoperative setting of cardiovascular surgery. The use of known parameters such as left atrial size, end-diastolic pressure, left ventricular ejection fraction using tissue Doppler sonography is a sensitive marker of arrhythmia in the early postoperative period.