Interatrial Block as a Strong Predictor of Postoperative Atrial Fibrillation in Off-Pump Cardiac Surgery

All articles of this category (opens in new window) Background: Postoperative atrial fibrillation (POAF) is the most common complication after cardiac surgery and is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. The role of interatrial block (IAB) as a predictor of POAF in patients undergoing off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (OPCAB) remains underexplored. Methods: This retrospective single-center study included 180 patients who underwent off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (OPCAB) at our institution between January 2020 and December 2024. Patients with a preoperative history of arrhythmia and those with incomplete data were excluded, resulting in a final cohort of 150 patients. Partial IAB (pIAB) was defined as a P-wave duration > 120 ms, while advanced IAB (aIAB) was defined as > 120 ms with biphasic morphology in inferior leads. Preoperative electrocardiograms were analyzed, and the occurrence of POAF before hospital discharge was recorded. A comparative analysis was performed between patients who developed POAF and those who did not. Results: POAF occurred in 18.7% of patients ( n = 28). There were no significant differences in baseline demographics or clinical scores between the POAF and non-POAF groups, except for a higher prevalence of reduced ejection fraction (