Focus on Healthy Aging - Corticosteroids may help prevent atrial fibrillation after Heart surgery
New research published in the April 11 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association shows that cardiac patients who were given high-dose hydrocortisone (a corticosteroid medication that reduces inflammation) before undergoing bypass surgery, valve replacement surgery, or both, were significantly less likely to develop atrial fibrillation (AF).
Most Popular
3 Questions No Job Seeker Ever Wants To Be Asked?
Business Plan Sample
10 Jobs That Pay $30 An Hour
5 Regular Mistakes In Public Speaking
13 Job Interview Mistakes To Avoid
AF (an abnormal heart rhythm that often occurs after heart surgery) can lead to chest pain, shortness of breath, and heart failure if not treated with medications that help to control heart rate, such as beta-blockers, calcium channel blockers, and digoxin. The study suggests that the administration of intravenous hydrocortisone the night before, the day of, and for two days after bypass and/or valve replacement surgery, may reduce the incidence of post-operative AF.
COPYRIGHT 2007 Belvoir Media Group, LLC
COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale, Cengage Learning
