Role of the autonomic nervous system in vagal atrial fibrillation: Table 1

ased on the seminal work of Coumel, the autonomic nervous system is considered to play a pathophysiological role in a subset of patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). Yet, the precise role of the autonomic nervous system in vagal AF is unclear. Is vagal AF caused by abnormal autonomic function or abnormal autonomic tone, or is there perhaps an increased sensitivity of the heart to vagal influences? In previous studies, 2 3 both autonomic function and autonomic tone were shown to be normal in patients with AF, suggesting that increased sensitivity of the heart to vagal influences plays a role. However, these studies were limited by small sample size. In the present study we sought to collect additional data to define the role of the autonomic nervous system in vagal AF.