For heart surgery patients with AFib, does adding a procedure to fix the rhythm help?

If you have atrial fibrillation (AFib) and need heart surgery that isn't on your mitral valve, your surgeon might suggest adding a procedure called surgical ablation to try to fix your irregular heartbeat during the same operation. A large review of studies looked at what happens when this is done. The analysis found that adding the ablation procedure was linked to a significant reduction in AFib coming back after surgery. This is a meaningful benefit for patients hoping to leave the hospital with a normal heart rhythm. However, the review also found a clear trade-off: patients who had the ablation were more likely to need a permanent pacemaker implanted after their surgery. The analysis did not find a difference in the risk of dying early after surgery or having a stroke between those who got the ablation and those who only had the planned heart surgery. This information helps patients and doctors have a clearer conversation about the potential pros and cons of combining these procedures.