CCS Atrial Fibrillation Guidelines help Canadian physicians recognize and treat heart conditions

The Canadian Cardiovascular Society Atrial Fibrillation Guidelines 2010 help Canadian physicians better recognize and treat a common heart condition that affects about 250,000 Canadians.

Published today in the Canadian Journal of Cardiology, the guidelines contain many new recommendations, including:

• "pill-in-pocket" therapy for patients with infrequent and longer-lasting atrial fibrillation. This would replace daily anti-arrhythmic therapy with a single drug dose
• the goal of rhythm control therapy should be to improve patient symptoms and to improve quality of life, not to eliminate atrial fibrillation

"These guidelines will help improve quality-of-life and reduce rates of stroke and hospitalization for atrial fibrillation-related causes," says Dr. Blair O'Neill, President of the Canadian Cardiovascular Society. "Guidelines like these are a priority for the CCS and highly valued by healthcare professionals."

Atrial fibrillation is a condition involving an irregular heart rhythm, known as arrhythmia. Individuals with atrial fibrillation have a three to five times greater risk for stroke. One in four Canadians over the age of 40 risks developing this anxiety-inducing, uncomfortable disease. After the age of 55, the incidence of atrial fibrillation doubles with each decade of life.

"Just in time for Heart Month, this tool addresses the prevention and care of cardiovascular diseases, which is the second leading cause of death among Canadians," says Dr. O'Neill.

The CCS last published a set of recommendations on the diagnosis and management of atrial fibrillation in 2005. Since then, major advances have been made in the management of this non-life threatening disease. In 2009, the CCS convened a panel of experts to review the knowledge and management of atrial fibrillation and to update evidence-based recommendations for primary care physicians, emergency room physicians, interns and cardiologists.

The CCS panel used the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) system of evaluation, created to address the shortcomings of other rating systems. The CCS is one of the first organizations to use this system.

The CCS has also developed tools to help integrate these guidelines into clinical practice. These include an easy-to-access "app" and pocket card for physicians, to be available this spring.