Emerging options to prevent stroke in atrial fibrillation patients

Brian SilverStroke Center, Rhode Island Hospital, Providence, RI, USAAbstract: Atrial fibrillation is a common condition in the population and increases in prevalence with age. A new method for evaluating stroke risk with atrial fibrillation, called CHA2DS2Vasc, has been developed, as has a novel method for estimating the risk of bleeding, called HAS-BLED. Further, the last decade has seen a dramatic increase in the number of treatment options tested for this condition. These include novel oral anticoagulants such as apixaban, dabigatran, and rivaroxaban, and devices that occlude the left atrial appendage, such as WATCHMAN. This review will compare these new agents with the historical gold standard of warfarin.Keywords: stroke, atrial fibrillation, treatment