Introduction
Determining the presence of AF in patients with cryptogenic stroke (CIS)
significantly impacts prognosis as anticoagulation in. these patients is
superior to aspirin for the secondary prevention of stroke
.3 Multiples studies have evaluated if baseline
clinical and epidemiological characteristics can predict the detection
of AF on prolonged cardiac monitoring and allow to risk stratify
patients. These have resulted in the development of new scores (HAVOC,
Brown ESUS AF, etc.,) and the use of previous scores (CHADS,
CHADS2-VASc, etc.) as means of evaluation of patients
after CIS, yet none of these methods have demonstrated enough
discriminating capacity to be used reliably to differentiate in which
patients AF will be detected.
Two trials (CRYSTAL AF and EMBRACE) have established the effectiveness
of continued cardiac monitoring for the detection of AF, and laid
foundation for extended cardiac monitoring to became standard of care
for patients with cryptogenic stroke.1,2
Both of these studies have mainly enrolled patients of Caucasian descent
(less than 4% Blacks). Two other studies included Chinese
population.4,5 As of now very little is known about
effectiveness of monitoring and frequency as well as pattern of AF in AA
patients with CIS.