Serum Fibrinogen and Renal Dysfunction as Important Predictors of Left Atrial Thrombosis in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation.

Background: As has been shown previously, patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) who have left atrial thrombus (LAT) also have elevated plasma concentrations of fibrinogen. In this study, we tried to determine if this is the consequence of a genetic trait and whether elevated concentrations of fibrinogen could be used to predict LAT in patients with AF.

Methods: We recruited 181 consecutive patients scheduled for pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) or direct current cardioversion.

Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction Can Predict Atrial Thrombosis Even in Non-High-Risk Individuals with Atrial Fibrillation.

Background—Current guidelines do not recommend routine use of transesophageal echocardiography (TOE) in anticoagulated patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). The aim of our study was to identify predictors for left atrial thrombosis (LAT) in patients with AF that would require TOE despite anticoagulation therapy, using clinical, laboratory and echocardiographic data which are usually obtained in those patients in a real-world setting. Methods—We analyzed data from electronic medical records (EMR) of consecutive AF patients referred to two university hospitals between January 2014 and December 2017 for pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) or direct current cardioversion.