More Monitoring Equals More AF Detection, but Does It Alter Clinical Outcomes?

Atrial fibrillation (AF), with or without symptoms, is responsible for significant mortality and morbidity. Typically, asymptomatic AF is diagnosed during a clinical visit for unrelated matters. Ambulatory screening is feasible and has been performed with implanted devices, blood-pressure cuffs, and stand-alone devices. Whether home-based monitoring systems diagnose more AF and reduce adverse outcomes such as stroke is not yet clear.

In the randomized, industry-supported mSToPS trial of a home-based monitoring system in patients at risk for AF, researchers compared 4-month results with immediate or delayed 2-week electrocardiographic monitoring with a wearable patch (NCT02506244). Of over a million health-plan members screened, >680,000 were…