Cardiac Output by External Radioisotope Counting in Patients Reverted from Atrial Fibrillation.

1 9 1 8, there has been considerable con-troversv as to its merits in conversion of patients with chronic atrial fibrillation to normal sinus rhythm. Although actual reversion is highly successful and may be accomplished in over 80 per cent of patients ,2'3 it was felt that mural thrombi might be dislodged with resultant disastrous embolization, especially upon resumed contraction of the auricles, and that patients were in most cases not better off with sinus rhythm than with slowing of the rate by digitalis.4 " With the advent of long-term anticoagulation treatment, several studies69 have shown a marked decrease of embolization during such therapy. In addition to the usual regimen with low sodium diet, digitalis and diuretics, Free-man and Wexler'#{176} used anticoagulants in such patients to prevent embolization and restored sinus rhythm with quinidine. This combination gave considerabl better results clinically with regard to mortality and compensation of heart failure than a control group or those anticoagulated alone. Cardiac output before and after reversion of atrial fibrillation has been performed in a number of studies, but the results have been somewhat conflicting.