A propensity-matched comparison of the incidence of new-onset postoperative atrial arrhythmias in cardiac and noncardiac thoracic surgery patients.
OBJECTIVE
The primary aim of this investigation was to compare the incidence of new-onset postoperative atrial arrhythmias (POAAs) in cardiac versus noncardiac thoracic surgery patients. A subgroup analysis also was performed in the cardiac surgery patients comparing POAAs in patients who underwent cardiac surgery on and off cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB).


METHODS
This was a retrospective study using the Department of Cardiothoracic Anesthesia patient registry. All patients (n = 33,500) undergoing cardiac (n = 29,057) and noncardiac thoracic (n = 4,443) surgeries between 1993 and 2004 were identified from the patient registry. Two propensity-matched comparisons for the incidence of POAAs were made: (1) in cardiac surgery patients versus noncardiac thoracic surgery patients and (2) in patients undergoing cardiac surgery with versus without CPB.


METHODS
A large metropolitan multidisciplinary clinic.


METHODS
Patients.


METHODS
No interventions were done because this was a retrospective study.


RESULTS
The cardiac patients had a significantly higher incidence of POAAs when compared with noncardiac thoracic surgery patients (11.6% v 7.5%, p < 0.001). There was no significant difference in the incidence of POAAs between patients undergoing CPB versus off-pump CPB (13.3% v 12.3%, p = 0.3).


CONCLUSIONS
The incidence of new-onset POAAs was higher in patients undergoing cardiac surgery than in patients undergoing noncardiac thoracic surgery in propensity-matched patient groups. CPB was not associated with new-onset POAAs.
Department of Anesthesiology, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, USA.
John S
JS
Seif
Sherif S
SS
Zaky
Anupa
A
Deogaonkar
Alaa A
AA
Abd-Elsayed
M Phil Liang
MP
Li
Marv
M
Leventhal
C Allen
CA
Bashour
D000368:Aged; D001145:Arrhythmias, Cardiac / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006348:Cardiac Surgical Procedures; D002315:Cardiopulmonary Bypass; D047549:Coronary Artery Bypass, Off-Pump; D003404:Creatinine / Q000097:blood; D016208:Databases, Factual; D005260:Female; D006325:Heart Atria; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D018401:Sample Size; D019616:Thoracic Surgical Procedures
D003404:Creatinine