Prophylactic use of amiodarone against postoperative atrial fibrillation after cardiac surgery

: We investigated the effect of amiodarone on prevention of post-operative atrial fibrillation (POAF) after cardiac surgery. Thirty cases of amiodarone (AMD) group including elective coronary artery bypass grafting and valve operation were enrolled from January 2007 to January 2010. The control (C) group consisted of 45 cases treated before 2007. Amiodarone was administered orally for the total of 14 days; 400 mg 7 days before the surgery, and a half dose after the surgery. POAF occurred significantly less in AMD group (4/30 : 13.3%) than in C group (13/45 : 28.9%) [p = 0.029]. With regard to duration of POAF, that of AMD group was significantly shorter than that of C group (16.0 hours vs 40.23 hours : p = 0.018). This research suggested that amiodarone might be effective in preventing POAF.