Which Recommendations Are You Using? A Survey of Emergency Physician Management of Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation

BACKGROUND: Both the Canadian Cardiovascular Society (CCS) and the Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians (CAEP) have published documents to guide atrial fibrillation (AF) management. In 2021, the CAEP updated its AF checklist. Prior to this update, the recommendations of the 2 organizations differed in several key areas, including the suggested cardioversion timeframe, the factors determining cardioversion eligibility, and anticoagulant initiation after cardioversion. Whether emergency physicians (EPs) are aware of, or adhering to, one, both, or neither of these documents is unknown. METHODS: We assessed document awareness, adherence, and EP practice using a piloted questionnaire administered to EPs at 5 emergency departments in 3 provinces. RESULTS: Of 166 survey recipients, 123 (74.1%) responded. The majority (64.7%) worked at an academic site, 38.8% identified as female, and median years in practice was 10.0. Most (93.1%) were aware of at least one of the documents; 45.7% were aware of both. Reported awareness was higher for the CCS (77.6%) vs the CAEP (61.2%) guidelines. Respondents varied in their adherence, with 40.5% using parts of both documents. Considerable practice variability occurred when recommendations conflicted. Despite its use not being recommended by either organization, half of respondents (50.0%) reported using the CHA(2)DS(2)-VASc score as their stroke-risk assessment tool. CONCLUSIONS: Although most surveyed EPs were aware of at least one organization’s AF documents, many reported using parts of both. When recommendations conflicted, EPs were divided in their decision-making. These findings emphasize the need to improve consensus between organizations and further improve knowledge translation.