Effectiveness of brain natriuretic peptide in predicting postoperative atrial fibrillation in patients undergoing non-cardiac thoracic surgery.

A best evidence topic was written according to a structured protocol. The question addressed was whether plasma brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) levels could effectively predict the occurrence of postoperative atrial fibrillation (AF) in patients undergoing non-cardiac thoracic surgery. A total of 14 papers were identified using the reported search, of which 5 represented the best evidence to answer the clinical question. The authors, date, journal, country, study type, population, outcomes and key results are tabulated. All studies were prospective observational, and all reported a significant association between BNP and N-terminal (NT)-proBNP plasma levels measured in the immediate preoperative period and the incidence of postoperative AF in patients undergoing either anatomical lung resections or oesophagectomy. One study reported a cut-off value of 30 pg/ml above which significantly more patients suffered from postoperative AF (P < 0.0001), while another one reported that this value could predict postoperative AF with a sensitivity of 77% and a specificity of 93%. Another study reported that patients with NT-proBNP levels of 113 pg/ml or above had an 8-fold increased risk of developing postoperative AF. These findings support that BNP or NT-proBNP levels, especially when determined during the preoperative period, if increased, are able to identify patients at risk for the development of postoperative AF after anatomical major lung resection or oesophagectomy. The same does not seem to be true for lesser lung resections. These high-risk patients might have a particular benefit from the administration of prophylactic antiarrhythmic therapy.