American heart journal
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American heart journal · Jun 2000
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter StudyTransesophageal echocardiography guided enoxaparin antithrombotic strategy for cardioversion of atrial fibrillation: the ACUTE II pilot study.
Patients with atrial fibrillation >2 days' duration for whom immediate cardioversion is desired or required are commonly hospitalized for 4 or more days of antithrombotic therapy with intravenous unfractionated heparin and commencement of oral warfarin. For these early cardioversion patients, self-administered low-molecular-weight heparin (enoxaparin sodium) as "bridge" therapy to warfarin may obviate the need for hospitalization and activated partial thromboplastin time monitoring and thus potentially lower costs and enhance utility. ⋯ The results of this pilot study will have important clinical and economic implications for the antithrombotic management of patients with atrial fibrillation undergoing TEE-guided cardioversion.