Reports From the Field: Beta-blockers after surgery shorten hospitalization
Beta-blockers used in patients undergoing heart surgery decreased the incidence of postoperative atrial fibrillation and shortened hospital stay, researchers report.
Led by Eugene Crystal, MD, of the Arrhythmia Service, Hamilton General Hospital, Ontario, Canada, the researchers reviewed evidence from 52 randomized trials of drugs of treatments to prevent atrial fibrillation. Drugs included amiodarone, an anti-arrhythmic drug, beta-blockers, and sotalol, a beta-blocker analyzed separately because of potential pro-arrhythmic side effects.
Their findings were reported in the June 11 rapid-access issue of Circulation: The Journal of the American Heart Association.
The efficacy of all the drugs was similar, but sotalol and amiodarone has some complications that may offset their advantages, Crystal says.
The researchers found that all three drugs reduced the length of hospital stay by about a half day.
"Reduction in length of stay by a simple, inexpensive therapy such as a beta-blocker can lead to a significant cost savings," Crystal says.
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