Atrial Fibrillation

Abnormal cardiac rhythm that is characterized by rapid, uncoordinated firing of electrical impulses in the upper chambers of the heart (HEART ATRIA). In such case, blood cannot be effectively pumped into the lower chambers of the heart (HEART VENTRICLES). It is caused by abnormal impulse generation.

Also Known As:

Networked: 16284 relevant articles (1322 outcomes, 2846 trials/studies)

Relationship Network

Disease Context: Research Results

Related Diseases

1.	Stroke (Strokes)
2.	Atrial Flutter (Flutter, Atrial)
3.	Heart Failure
4.	Tachycardia (Tachyarrhythmias)
5.	Embolism (Embolus)

Experts

1.	Lip, Gregory Y H: 264 articles (01/2016 - 05/2002)
2.	Connolly, Stuart J: 90 articles (12/2015 - 04/2002)
3.	Natale, Andrea: 85 articles (01/2016 - 08/2002)
4.	Hohnloser, Stefan H: 79 articles (07/2015 - 06/2002)
5.	Nattel, Stanley: 72 articles (12/2015 - 05/2002)
6.	Wallentin, Lars: 64 articles (01/2016 - 05/2003)
7.	Yusuf, Salim: 62 articles (10/2015 - 07/2002)
8.	Chen, Shih-Ann: 57 articles (10/2015 - 12/2003)
9.	Dobrev, Dobromir: 55 articles (12/2015 - 05/2002)
10.	Camm, A John: 54 articles (10/2015 - 08/2002)

Drugs and Biologics

Drugs and Important Biological Agents (IBA) related to Atrial Fibrillation:

1.	Warfarin (Coumadin)FDA LinkGeneric 10/15/2011 - "Warfarin is a complex but highly effective treatment for decreasing thromboembolic risk in atrial fibrillation (AF). " 07/01/2005 - "Although highly effective in preventing thromboembolic events among patients with atrial fibrillation, warfarin therapy is limited by a multitude of potential problems. " 01/01/2013 - "Despite the proven efficacy of warfarin, its use in patients with Atrial Fibrillation (AF) is reportedly low. " 03/01/1992 - "Three randomised studies of primary prevention have shown a significant reduction of the embolic risk in non-valvular atrial fibrillation treated by warfarin compared to patients on placebo. " 04/01/2012 - "Long-term anticoagulation with warfarin is the mainstay of treatment in patients with diseases with high thromboembolic potential, such as atrial fibrillation. "
2.	Amiodarone (Amiodarona)FDA LinkGeneric 01/01/1985 - "Intravenous amiodarone appears as a highly effective medication in the conversion or control of new onset atrial fibrillation with fast ventricular response." 07/01/1980 - "Fifteen have been controlled with amiodarone, this treatment proving most effective in atrial fibrillation or flutter with or without pre-excitation. " 02/01/2013 - "Multiple studies have shown that amiodarone is effective in treating atrial fibrillation (AF), but is associated with a relatively high incidence of side effects; however, due to amiodarone's long elimination half-life (20-100 days), physicians may hesitate to start other drugs until it has fully cleared. " 07/01/2007 - "Good results have been obtained with a human amiodarone (AD) i.v. protocol in horses with chronic atrial fibrillation (AF) and a pharmacokinetic study is required for a specific i.v. amiodarone treatment protocol for horses. " 01/01/2013 - "Shown that the VFS is more effective than amiodarone, both in paroxysmal atrial fibrillation and ventricular arrhythmias when high gradation. "
3.	AnticoagulantsIBA 01/01/2013 - "Novel oral anticoagulants appear as a very promising treatment option for atrial fibrillation." 04/01/2009 - "Oral anticoagulants (OA) are effective in the prevention of cerebrovascular events among patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). " 01/01/2016 - "Meta-Analysis of Renal Function on the Safety and Efficacy of Novel Oral Anticoagulants for Atrial Fibrillation." 05/05/2014 - "Due to improved implementation of guidelines, new scoring approaches to improve risk categorisation, and introduction of novel oral anticoagulants, medical management of patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) is continuously improving. " 01/01/2014 - "Consistency of safety and efficacy of new oral anticoagulants across subgroups of patients with atrial fibrillation."
4.	Propafenone (Rythmol)FDA LinkGeneric 06/01/1987 - "Furthermore, propafenone caused a marked decrease in peak ventricular rate during atrial fibrillation. " 03/01/1996 - "Furthermore, the percentage decrease of ventricular rate during atrial fibrillation was significantly greater in patients with propafenone (-25 +/- 4% versus -8 +/- 3%, P < 0.01). " 12/15/2002 - "We report a double-blind, multicenter, multinational, placebo-controlled, and well-controlled trial to prove that the sustained-release (SR) formulation of propafenone is superior to placebo in preventing symptoms of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF). " 03/01/2000 - "Propafenone is an effective and safe antiarrhythmic drug for converting paroxysmal and/or recent-onset atrial fibrillation of various origins with a more limited efficacy in chronic atrial fibrillation." 01/01/1995 - "The two drugs were equally effective in converting postoperative atrial fibrillation and/or flutter after 24 h although propafenone was superior within the first hour."
5.	Aspirin (Acetylsalicylic Acid)FDA LinkGeneric 01/01/2015 - "However, dialysis patients have been under-represented in the cardiovascular trials which have proven net benefit of commonly used preventative treatments (e.g., antihypertensive treatments, low-dose aspirin, carotid revascularization, and thromboprophylaxis for atrial fibrillation), and there remains uncertainty about safety and efficacy of many of these treatments in this high-risk population. " 11/01/2000 - "We performed a multicentric placebo-controlled double blind-trial to test the preventive efficacy against thromboembolic events of the addition of aspirin (A) (100 mg) or placebo (P) to anticoagulant treatment in patients with high-risk atrial fibrillation. " 03/01/1992 - "Only one study has shown a significant reduction of the embolic risk in patients under 75 years of age with non-valvular atrial fibrillation treated with 325 mg/day of aspirin. " 09/01/2014 - "Safety and efficacy of switching anticoagulation to aspirin three months after successful radiofrequency catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation." 11/01/2000 - "A combination of low-dose aspirin (A) and anticoagulation (AC) may provide better protection against thromboembolic events compared with AC alone in high-risk patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). "
6.	Anti-Arrhythmia AgentsIBA 04/01/2006 - "Because presently available antiarrhythmic drugs are neither as highly efficacious nor as safe as desirable for the prevention of atrial fibrillation (AF), rate control-versus-rhythm control trials for the treatment of AF were evaluated. " 07/01/2013 - "Antiarrhythmic drugs (AADs) are often used after ablation for atrial fibrillation (AF); the drugs employed vary, but most common are the drugs that were unsuccessful prior to ablation since it seems that the efficacy of AADs might substantially increase after catheter ablation of AF. " 06/01/2013 - "Major challenges in atrial fibrillation management include selecting patients most likely to benefit from rhythm control, choosing specific antiarrhythmic drugs or procedures to achieve rhythm control, long-term monitoring to gauge the efficacy of rhythm control, and determining which (if any) patients may safely discontinue anticoagulation if long-term NSR is achieved." 04/01/2007 - "The convenience to count with a safe and effective pharmacological wealth for atrial fibrillation treatment had conduced, in a way, to a deep depuration of the vast array of antiarrhythmic drugs, keeping only a very restricted number of compounds with a widely proved anti-atrial activity. " 07/01/1999 - "Antiarrhythmic drugs remain the mainstay of treatment of atrial fibrillation, but their potential proarrhythmic effects hamper their optimal use. "
7.	Digoxin (Digitek)FDA LinkGeneric 10/01/2001 - "The first of the above adjustment methods would lead to good results if digoxin has not been prescriped in order to control the cardiac frequency in the setting of auricular fibrillation." 10/01/1992 - "In patients with atrial fibrillation digoxin is beneficial for ventricular rate control. " 12/16/2003 - "Digoxin is only effective for rate control at rest and therefore should only be used as a second-line agent for rate control in atrial fibrillation. " 01/01/1994 - "The use of digoxin remains a mainstay of treatment for rate control in atrial fibrillation. " 04/01/1987 - "to determine whether digoxin is effective in converting atrial fibrillation of recent onset to normal sinus rhythm. "
8.	Flecainide (Tambocor)FDA LinkGeneric 11/01/2004 - "It has been reported that i.v. flecainide has a high efficacy for the treatment of experimentally-induced acute atrial fibrillation (AF) in horses and that its use is associated with minimal toxic side effects. " 01/25/1996 - "Although both drugs were equally effective in adequately controlling recurrences of atrial fibrillation (difference, p = 0.282; not significant), fewer flecainide patients had to have their therapy discontinued due to adverse experiences (p = 0.012). " 07/01/1987 - "Flecainide therefore appears to be effective in reducing recent atrial fibrillation on a non-dilated atrium. " 02/01/2011 - "Twenty-five years in the making: flecainide is safe and effective for the management of atrial fibrillation." 11/01/2004 - "The objectives were to study the efficacy of i.v. flecainide as a treatment for atrial fibrillation in horses with naturally-occurring AF. "
9.	Sotalol (Sotalol Hydrochloride)FDA LinkGeneric 07/01/2000 - "Administration of intravenous sotalol was effective in preventing early reinitiation of atrial fibrillation in five of seven (71%) patients where pacing failed to suppress early reinitiation of atrial fibrillation. " 11/01/1997 - "Is oral sotalol effective in converting atrial fibrillation to sinus rhythm?" 04/01/1997 - "On subanalysis, sotalol was shown to be effective in the prophylaxis of both paroxysmal atrial fibrillation and paroxysmal reentrant arrhythmias. " 09/01/1993 - "A larger dose of sotalol (cumulative dose, 8 mg/kg) was uniformly effective in terminating atrial fibrillation and preventing its induction. " 02/01/1993 - "Sotalol was effective in reducing the incidence of atrial fibrillation. "
10.	dronedaroneFDA Link 11/01/2004 - "Two recent studies on the prevention of atrial fibrillation have demonstrated that dronedarone is moderately effective with an excellent general tolerance." 01/01/2009 - "Furthermore, dronedarone, a prototypic multichannel blocker with additional effects on ventricular myocardium, has proven well tolerated and effective in the treatment of atrial fibrillation and may even reduce cardiovascular mortality. " 01/01/2010 - "The ATHENA trial demonstrated a significant reduction in cardiovascular hospitalizations and death in atrial fibrillation patients randomly assigned to receive dronedarone or placebo. " 03/01/2010 - "In two design-identical randomised clinical trials (EURIDIS and ADONIS trial) the efficacy of dronedarone to maintain sinus rhythm in patients with chronic atrial fibrillation/flutter was shown to be clearly superior to placebo. " 08/01/2012 - "Dronedarone on top of SOC appears to be a cost-effective treatment for atrial fibrillation compared with SOC alone. "

Therapies and Procedures

1.	Electric Countershock (Cardioversion) 10/01/1996 - "Previous studies in patients with atrial fibrillation undergoing intracardiac cardioversion have suggested that intracardiac cardioversion is highly effective and safe. " 12/01/2014 - "It is highly effective in the management of recurrent ventricular dysrhythmias, paroxysmal supraventricular dysrhythmias, including atrial fibrillation and flutter, and in the maintenance of sinus rhythm after electrical cardioversion of atrial fibrillation. " 02/20/2009 - "Electrical cardioversion (EC) remains the most effective treatment for the restoration of sinus rhythm in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). " 04/14/2006 - "Cardioversion for atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most effective treatment for the restoration of sinus rhythm (SR). " 07/01/2005 - "For refractory atrial fibrillation to conventional cardioversion double sequential transthoracic shocks represents a safe and highly efficacious alternative and may have a general applicability."
2.	Coronary Artery Bypass (Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery) 01/01/2002 - "beta-adrenoceptor antagonists (b-blockers) are very effective in preventing atrial fibrillation after coronary artery bypass surgery. " 01/01/2013 - "Prevention of post-coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) atrial fibrillation: efficacy of prophylactic beta-blockers in the modern era: a meta-analysis of latest randomized controlled trials." 09/15/2011 - "An open-label study reported that ingestion of a fish oil concentrate decreased the incidence of atrial fibrillation (AF) after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) surgery. " 01/01/2015 - "[Efficacy of Statin Therapy in the Prevention of Atrial Fibrillation in Early Postoperative Period after Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting]." 10/01/2013 - "Prediction of atrial fibrillation (AF) after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) may lead to preventive or early treatment and improved outcome. "
3.	Catheters 03/01/2015 - "The staged hybrid epicardial-endocardial treatment of long-standing persistent atrial fibrillation seems to be extremely effective in maintenance of normal sinus rhythm compared to radiofrequency catheter or surgical ablation alone. " 01/01/2015 - "Atrial fibrillation (AF) results in a remodeling of the electrical and structural characteristics of the cardiac tissue which dramatically reduces the efficacy of pharmacological and catheter-based ablation therapies. " 05/01/2002 - "In the animal model, segmentation of the atria with radiofrequency-generated linear lesions (LL) using the loop catheter has been shown to be highly effective in terminating chronic atrial fibrillation (AF). " 09/01/2015 - "The use of CF technology results in significant reduction of the atrial fibrillation recurrence rate after atrial fibrillation ablation in comparison to the conventional catheter group. " 05/01/2015 - "To analyze safety and efficacy of surgical totally endoscopic epimyocardial ablation in patients (pts) turned down for interventional catheter therapy due to long-standing persistent atrial fibrillation (pAF) combined with significant atrial dilatation (> 5 cm). "
4.	Drug Therapy (Chemotherapy) 06/01/2015 - "The electrocardiogram (ECG) fibrillatory (f) wave characteristics in atrial fibrillation (AF) could provide important information regarding the efficacy of antiarrhythmic drug therapy. " 10/25/2012 - "In comparing radiofrequency ablation with antiarrhythmic drug therapy as first-line treatment in patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation, we found no significant difference between the treatment groups in the cumulative burden of atrial fibrillation over a period of 2 years. " 08/01/1999 - "Due to the limited efficacy of drug therapy in atrial fibrillation and the high rate of recurrence, strong efforts were made to find non-pharmacological strategies. " 01/01/2008 - "There is also evidence to suggest that atrial-fibrillation ablation is superior to drug therapy as first-line treatment. " 01/01/2014 - "Pulmonary vein (PV) isolation by means of cryoballoon (CB) technology is an effective treatment for symptomatic paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF) refractory to antiarrhythmic drug therapy. "
5.	Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy 11/01/2005 - "For patients undergoing AV node ablation for atrial fibrillation, biventricular pacing provides a significant improvement in the 6-minute hallway walk test and ejection fraction compared to right ventricular pacing. " 12/01/2013 - "The purpose of this study is to determine whether, in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) undergoing cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT), atrioventricular junction ablation (AVJA) is associated with a better outcome than treatment with rate-slowing drugs. " 10/01/2011 - "On the basis of the current knowledge, cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) cannot be recommended as a first-line treatment for patients with severely symptomatic permanent atrial fibrillation undergoing atrioventricular (AV) junction ablation. " 10/01/2013 - "Remarkably little evidence exists that cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) is effective in patients who have atrial fibrillation (AF) but who otherwise seem suitable for this treatment. " 12/01/2000 - "The MUSTIC trial suggested that cardiac resynchronisation using biventricular pacing improved patients symptomatically whether or not the patient was in atrial fibrillation. "