• Ragnhildur Heidarsdottir, David O Arnar, Gudrun V Skuladottir, Bjarni Torfason, Vidar Edvardsson, Gizur Gottskalksson, Runolfur Palsson, and Olafur S Indridason.
• Department of Physiology, School of Health Sciences, University of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland.
• Europace. 2010 Mar 1; 12 (3): 356-63.

AimsTo examine the effect of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) treatment on the incidence of post-operative atrial fibrillation (POAF).Methods And ResultsA prospective, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial was conducted in patients admitted for coronary artery bypass grafting and/or valvular repair surgery. The patients received either n-3 PUFA capsules, containing a daily dose of 1240 mg eicosapentaenoic acid and 1000 mg docosahexaenoic acid, or olive oil capsules for 5-7 days prior to surgery and post-operatively until hospital discharge. The endpoint was POAF, defined as an episode detected by continuous electrocardiographic monitoring, lasting >5 min. A total of 170 patients were enrolled in the study, and 168 patients underwent surgery. Their median age was 67 (range 43-82) years, and 79.2% were males. There was no difference in baseline characteristics between the n-3 PUFA group (n = 83) and the placebo group (n = 85), and the incidence of POAF was 54.2 and 54.1% (P = 0.99), respectively. Factors associated with POAF included advanced age, peak post-operative C-reactive protein level, valvular surgery, lower body mass index, and non-smoking, but n-3 PUFA concentration in plasma lipids was not associated with POAF.ConclusionThere is no evidence for a beneficial effect of treatment with n-3 PUFA on the occurrence of POAF in patients undergoing open heart surgery.

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