Atrial Fibrillation and Hypertension: Do New Anticoagulants Change the Matter?

摘要

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a relevant problem in hypertensive patients. Current guidelines for the management of patients with AF recommend that all hypertensive patients should receive therapy, oral anti-coagulation in the great majority of cases, to prevent thromboembolic complications. The recent position paper of the Working Group "Hypertension Arrhythmias and Thrombosis" of the European Society of Hypertension indicates that vitamin K antagonists have been proven effective for more than 50 years and are the standard anticoagulation treatment for AF. However, as they indicate, they have important disadvantages that include their underutilization for different reasons and this translates into an increase of morbidity and mortality.