Purpose of review: Atrial fibrillation is associated with a significant increase in stroke and systemic embolism. This review explores the areas of stroke prevention.
Recent findings: In the last decade, NOAC has overtaken warfarin as the anticoagulant of choice for stroke prevention in AF. For patients unable to take anticoagulation, LAA closure has proven to be a valid option. The use of digital devices has led to widespread consumer-directed AF screening. It remains to be determined if all device detect AF pose the same amount of risk as recent studies have shown that short and infrequent episodes of AF may not benefit from anticoagulation. Stroke prevention is paramount in the management of AF. In this review we describe the risk factors contributing to stroke, recent advances in antithrombotic therapies, and the increasing role of digital health in guiding AF detection and stroke prevention.
Keywords: Atrial fibrillation; Digital health; Left atrial appendage closure; Risk stratification; Stroke prevention; Wearable technology.
© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.