Fish oil supplementation for primary prevention of atrial fibrillation after coronary artery bypass graft surgery: A randomized clinical trial

Atrial fibrillation (AF) after cardiac surgery is a common complication that may influence patients' early and long term outcomes and hospital costs. The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of fish oil on occurrence of AF following coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG). This study was a single-center, randomized, double blinded, placebo-controlled clinical trial. Four-hundred and one patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft surgery were randomly assigned to receive 2 g/d fish oil or placebo (olive oil) for at least 5 days before surgery. The primary end point was defined as time to AF improvement After AF incidence following isolated CABG or a need for pharmacologic therapy or cardioversion. The time to AF improvement in intervention group was shorter than control group (HR: 2.05; 95% CI = 0.70–6.22, P = 0.20). The incidence of AF in the intervention and control groups was 8.40% vs. 14.07% respectively (p = 0.07). Mean total duration of AF was 20.96 ± 4.71 h in intervention groups and 46.87 ± 7.44 h in control groups (p = 0.04). Mean duration of stay in the ICU and total hospital stay showed a significant reduction in the intervention group (p = 0.003 and p = 0.04, respectively). The consumption of PUFA leads to a shorter time to AF improvement, which was not statistically significant. The incidence of AF in patients undergoing CABG surgery was decreased by approximately 5.7%; which was statistically on the borderline. Fish oil reduced median length of stay in the ICU and hospital. Further well-designed studies are needed to overcome the limitations of the existing trials and provide conclusive conclusions.