New Insights into the Mechanisms and Risk Factors of Postoperative Atrial Fibrillation following Cardiac Surgery

Postoperative atrial fibrillation (POAF) following cardiac surgery represents a common, potentially morbid, and often misunderstood complication. Patients who develop POAF incur an increased cost of care, a prolonged hospital stay, and are at a higher risk for numerous adverse outcomes, including renal and respiratory failure, cardiac arrest, stroke, and death. The etiology of POAF is multifactorial and likely involves interplay between individual characteristics and predispositions, cardiac remodeling, and postoperative inflammation. This Mini Review summarizes the known risk factors for POAF and describes recent breakthroughs in the understanding of the pathophysiology of this complication.