The ACTIVE Pursuit of Stroke Prevention in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation

Approximately 1% of Americans have atrial fibrillation, and the prevalence of this arrhythmia increases sharply with older age (being approximately 10% among persons 80 years of age or older).1 Worldwide population trends of increasing life expectancy and increasing prevalence of selected risk factors for atrial fibrillation portend a worsening epidemic. Atrial fibrillation raises the risk of ischemic stroke by a factor of four to five, primarily as a result of cardioembolism of a fibrin-rich thrombus (Figure 1). Given the epidemiologic characteristics of atrial fibrillation and the importance of stroke as a leading cause of death and disability, multiple large-scale, randomized . . .