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Albert L. Waldo, MD

JAMA. 2003;290:1093-1095.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

Atrial fibrillation is a relatively common clinical problem, affecting an estimated 2.3 million adults in the United States.¹ The prevalence of atrial fibrillation increases with age; nearly 4% of persons aged 60 years or older and 9% of those aged 80 years or older have atrial fibrillation,¹ and about half the patients in the United States with atrial fibrillation are older than 75 years.² By the year 2050, the prevalence of atrial fibrillation is expected to increase about 2.5 fold, with most of that increase explained by the growing proportion of individuals living into their 80s and beyond.¹

Until a therapy or therapies are found that reliably, effectively, and safely prevent its recurrence, the 2 most important clinical problems associated with atrial fibrillation are prevention of tachycardia-mediated cardiomyopathy and prevention of ischemic stroke. Although prevention of tachycardia-mediated cardiomyopathy should almost always be possible, prevention of ischemic . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Author Affiliation: Case Western Reserve University, University Hospitals of Cleveland, Cleveland, Ohio.

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