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Published at www.nejm.org May 27, 2009 (10.1056/NEJMp0903763)

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More than 3 million Americans have atrial fibrillation, which increases their risk of stroke by a factor of 5.^1,2 Patients with atrial fibrillation account for one of every six strokes, and thromboemboli originating from the left atrial appendage are the suspected culprit in the vast majority of these cases.^1,2 Warfarin, a vitamin K antagonist, is the most commonly prescribed treatment for stroke prevention in patients with atrial fibrillation; yet despite warfarin's proven benefit, its effective delivery is challenged by a narrow therapeutic window and an increased risk of bleeding. Efforts have been made to develop alternative treatment strategies — including . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Source Information

Dr. Maisel is the director of the Medical Device Safety Institute at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston.

This article (10.1056/NEJMp0903763) was published on May 27, 2009, at NEJM.org.

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Whitlock, R. P., Healey, J. S., Connolly, S. J. (2009). Left Atrial Appendage Occlusion Does Not Eliminate the Need for Warfarin. Circulation 120: 1927-1932 [Full Text]