Postoperative White Blood Cell Count Predicts Atrial Fibrillation after Cardiac Surgery

Abstract

Background: Postoperative atrial fibrillation (AF) occurs in up to 50% of cardiac surgery patients and represents the most common postoperative arrhythmic complication. The etiology of AF after open-heart surgery is incompletely understood and its prevention remains suboptimal. Currently, the role of inflammation and oxidative stress on electrical remodelling is under investigation and recent studies have demonstrated that CRP levels are elevated in atrial fibrillation. The aim of the present study was to investigate the correlation between the postoperative white blood cell (WBC) count as a marker of inflammation and the development of postoperative AF after cardiac surgery.