Koshy AN, Hamilton G, Theuerle J, et al. - Through a systematic review and meta-analysis, experts evaluated the risk of stroke following postoperative atrial fibrillation in noncardiac surgery. In the quantitative analysis, 14 studies of 3,536,291 individuals who were undergoing noncardiac surgery were involved. With a greater incidence after thoracic surgery, in 26,046 individuals, the occurrence of new atrial fibrillation was seen. In individuals with and without postoperative atrial fibrillation, stroke occurred in 279 and 6,199 individuals, respectively. On pooled analysis, postoperative atrial fibrillation was related to a significantly heightened risk of stroke, with modest heterogeneity. The stroke risk was significantly greater with atrial fibrillation after nonthoracic vs thoracic surgery. In conclusion, new postoperative atrial fibrillation after noncardiac surgery was related to a 2.5-fold rise in the risk of stroke. Among individuals undergoing nonthoracic noncardiac surgery, this risk was highest. Randomized controlled trials are guaranteed to evaluate whether they can decrease the risk of stroke in such cases, provided the documented efficiency of newer anticoagulants.