Findings of the EAST-AFNET 4 trial, examining the benefit of early rhythm control therapy in patients with newly diagnosed atrial fibrillation (AF), should influence future guidelines for the treatment of AF patients.
This was the message of Paulus Kirchhof (Hamburg, Germany and Birmingham, UK), speaking to Cardiac Rhythm News at the 2022 European Heart Rhythm Association annual meeting (EHRA 2022, 3‒5 April, Copenhagen, Denmark), where he unpacked the findings of the trial, and gave some insights into next steps for the AFNET study programme.
“The simple conclusion in my view, is that patients with recently diagnosed atrial fibrillation should not only be offered anticoagulation, but also rhythm control,” Kirchhof said, noting that the EAST-AFNET 4 data offer a “solid” basis for this conclusion.
