Management of antiplatelet and anticoagulant therapy in patients with atrial fibrillation in the setting of acute coronary syndromes or percutaneous coronary interventions

Abstract

Atrial fibrillation (AF), the most common cardiac arrhythmia, occurs in 1% to 2% of the general population, with a prevalence varying from 0.5% in subjects 40 to 50 years old to 5% to 15% in the elderly who are >80 years old.1-3 Stroke is the most feared complication of AF, resulting in death or disabling symptoms in a vast proportion of cases.4 In the Framingham study, the age-adjusted incidence of stroke was 5-fold higher in subjects with AF, and the attributable risk raised from 1.5% at 50 to 59 years to 23.5% at 80 to 89 years. © 2014 American Heart Association, Inc.