Atrial fibrillation in patients with cryptogenic stroke.

David J Gladstone1, Melanie Spring, Paul Dorian

  • 1From the Division of Neurology (D.J.G.), Department of Medicine (D.J.G., P.D., A.L., M.S., J.A.B., L.K.C., D.S., M. Mehdiratta, K.B., M.K.K.), and Dalla Lana School of Public Health (K.E.T.), University of Toronto, the University of Toronto Stroke Program (D.J.G.), Division of Neurology, Department of Medicine, and Brain Sciences Program, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and Sunnybrook Research Institute (D.J.G., R.A.), the Heart and Stroke Foundation Canadian Partnership for Stroke Recovery (D.J.G.), and the Applied Health Research Centre, Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute of St. Michael's Hospital (V.P., K.E.T., J.H., H.V., A.L., M. Mamdani), Toronto, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON (M.S., D.J.S.), McGill University, Montreal (R.C.), University of Alberta, Edmonton (A.S., B.B.), Western University, London, ON (V.H., J.D.S.), Department of Clinical Neurosciences and Radiology, Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB (S.B.C.), University of British Columbia, Vancouver (P.T., S.Y.), Queen's University, Kingston, ON (A.J.), Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre, Thunder Bay, ON (D.H.), Université Laval, Quebec City (S.V.), and Vancouver Island Health Research Centre, Victoria, BC (A.P.) - all in Canada; and the National University of Ireland, Galway (M.O.).

Summary

Extended ECG monitoring significantly increases the detection of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF) in stroke patients. This leads to a higher rate of anticoagulant treatment, improving stroke prevention.

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