Atrial Fibrillation and Stroke

Atrial fibrillation (AF) represents a major cause of morbidity and mortality in adults, especially for its strong association with thromboembolism and stroke. In this chapter, we aim to provide an overview on this cardiac arrhythmia, addressing several important questions. Particularly, we faced the...

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Autores principales: Spagnolo, Francesca, Pinto, Vincenza, Rini, Augusto Maria
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Lenguaje:inglés
Publicado: IntechOpen 2022
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Acceso en línea:https://www.intechopen.com/chapters/81721
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author Spagnolo, Francesca
Pinto, Vincenza
Rini, Augusto Maria
author_browse Pinto, Vincenza
Rini, Augusto Maria
Spagnolo, Francesca
author_facet Spagnolo, Francesca
Pinto, Vincenza
Rini, Augusto Maria
author_sort Spagnolo, Francesca
building IntechOpen
collection Acceso abierto
description Atrial fibrillation (AF) represents a major cause of morbidity and mortality in adults, especially for its strong association with thromboembolism and stroke. In this chapter, we aim to provide an overview on this cardiac arrhythmia, addressing several important questions. Particularly, we faced the possible mechanisms leading to an increased risk of embolism in AF, emphasizing how Virchow’s triad for thrombogenesis is unable to fully explain this risk. Disentangling the risk of stroke caused by AF and by other associated vascular conditions is extremely challenging, and risk stratification of patients with AF into those at high and low risk of thromboembolism has become a crucial determinant of optimal antithrombotic prophylaxis. Moreover, we discuss the typical clinical and radiological characteristics of cardioembolic strokes, addressing acute, time-dependent reperfusional therapies in case of ischemic stroke. The role of anticoagulation in AF is also fully analyzed; the benefit of oral anticoagulation generally outweighs the risk of bleeding in AF patients, and a variety of scoring systems have been developed to improve clinical decision-making when initiating anticoagulation. With their predictable pharmacokinetic profiles, wide therapeutic windows, fewer drug–drug and drug-food interactions, and the non-vitamin K antagonist (VKA) oral anticoagulants (NOACs) have changed the landscape of thromboprophylaxis for AF patients, offering the opportunity to use effective anticoagulants without the need for intensive therapeutic drug monitoring.
doi_str_mv 10.5772/intechopen.104619
first_indexed 2026-10-15T21:39:22Z
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spelling intech-817212022-05-24 Atrial Fibrillation and Stroke Francesca Spagnolo Vincenza Pinto Augusto Maria Rini Health Sciences Atrial fibrillation (AF) represents a major cause of morbidity and mortality in adults, especially for its strong association with thromboembolism and stroke. In this chapter, we aim to provide an overview on this cardiac arrhythmia, addressing several important questions. Particularly, we faced the possible mechanisms leading to an increased risk of embolism in AF, emphasizing how Virchow’s triad for thrombogenesis is unable to fully explain this risk. Disentangling the risk of stroke caused by AF and by other associated vascular conditions is extremely challenging, and risk stratification of patients with AF into those at high and low risk of thromboembolism has become a crucial determinant of optimal antithrombotic prophylaxis. Moreover, we discuss the typical clinical and radiological characteristics of cardioembolic strokes, addressing acute, time-dependent reperfusional therapies in case of ischemic stroke. The role of anticoagulation in AF is also fully analyzed; the benefit of oral anticoagulation generally outweighs the risk of bleeding in AF patients, and a variety of scoring systems have been developed to improve clinical decision-making when initiating anticoagulation. With their predictable pharmacokinetic profiles, wide therapeutic windows, fewer drug–drug and drug-food interactions, and the non-vitamin K antagonist (VKA) oral anticoagulants (NOACs) have changed the landscape of thromboprophylaxis for AF patients, offering the opportunity to use effective anticoagulants without the need for intensive therapeutic drug monitoring. IntechOpen 2022-05-24 Chapter, Part Of Book https://www.intechopen.com/chapters/81721 doi:10.5772/intechopen.104619 en ISBN:978-1-83962-700-2 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ https://www.intechopen.com/books/10782 ; Cerebrovascular Diseases - Elucidating Key Principles
spellingShingle Health Sciences
Spagnolo, Francesca
Pinto, Vincenza
Rini, Augusto Maria
Atrial Fibrillation and Stroke
title Atrial Fibrillation and Stroke
title_full Atrial Fibrillation and Stroke
title_fullStr Atrial Fibrillation and Stroke
title_full_unstemmed Atrial Fibrillation and Stroke
title_short Atrial Fibrillation and Stroke
title_sort atrial fibrillation and stroke
topic Health Sciences
url https://www.intechopen.com/chapters/81721
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