Atrial fibrillation (acute onset)

Risk factors for acute atrial fibrillation include increasing age, cardiovascular disease, alcohol, diabetes, and lung disease. Acute atrial fibrillation increases the risk of stroke and heart failure. Acute atrial fibrillation resolves spontaneously within 24-48 hours in over 50% of people, however many people will require interventions to control heart rate or restore sinus rhythm.

We conducted a systematic review and aimed to answer the following clinical questions: What are the effects of interventions: to prevent embolism; for conversion to sinus rhythm; and to control heart rate in people with recent onset atrial fibrillation (within 7 days) who are haemodynamically stable? We searched: Medline, Embase, The Cochrane Library and other important databases up to October 2007 (Clinical Evidence reviews are updated periodically, please check our website for the most up-to-date version of this review). We included harms alerts from relevant organisations such as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

We found 28 systematic reviews, RCTs, or observational studies that met our inclusion criteria. We performed a GRADE evaluation of the quality of evidence for interventions.

In this systematic review we present information relating to the effectiveness and safety of the following interventions: amiodarone, antithrombotic treatment before cardioversion, digoxin, diltiazem, direct current cardioversion, flecainide, propafenone, quinidine, sotalol, timolol, and verapamil.