2019 AHA/ACC/HRS Focused Update of the 2014 AHA/ACC/HRS Guideline for the Management of Patients With Atrial Fibrillation

January 28, 2019 – The purpose of this document is to update the 2014 AHA/ACC/HRS Guideline for the Management of Patients With Atrial Fibrillation (2014 AF Guideline) in areas for which new evidence has emerged since its publication. The scope of this focused update includes revisions to the section on anticoagulant (because of the approval of new medications and thromboembolism protection devices), revisions to the section on catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation (AF), revisions to the section on the management of AF complicating acute coronary syndrome (ACS), and new sections on device detection of AF and weight loss.

The areas of the 2014 AF Guideline that were updated were limited to those for which important new data from clinical trials had emerged and/or new U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) indications for thromboembolism protection devices have appeared in the data available to the writing group up to August 2018.

A briefing with Hugh Calkins, MD, FACC, FAHA, FHRS, available on Heart Rhythm 365, highlights the most important modifications to the guidelines and their impact on patient management.