Postoperative atrial fibrillation in cancer surgery: preoperative risks and clinical outcome

Postoperative atrial fibrillation (AF) is a recognized complication of cancer surgery. The purpose of this study was to define preoperative risk factors for AF, and to evaluate the clinical significance of the arrhythmia. We reviewed the medical records of 43 patients with postoperative AF admitted to the surgical intensive care unit (SICU). All patients were older than 60 years, 79% had a history of cigarette smoking, and 44% had hypertension. AF occurred an average of 2.8 days following surgery, and lasted an average of 2.1 days. No significant complications developed, and there were no long-term sequelae. This study suggests that, in cancer patients, postoperative AF is a disease of elderly patients. In addition the arrhythmia appears to be a relatively transient and benign phenomenon. Prolonged monitoring in an intensive care setting may not be necessary for asymptomatic, hemodynamically stable patients.