Elective cardioversion at a district general hospital: a retrospective evaluation of outcomes.

Direct current cardioversion is a procedure for treating abnormal heart rhythms, and cardioversion is often performed electively to restore sinus rhythm in patients with persistent atrial fibrillation or atrial flutter. A retrospective evaluation of elective cardioversion data at a local general hospital was undertaken to evaluate the success and outcomes of cardioversion. This evaluation also considered the outcomes for two subsets of patients with heart failure and obesity, as it has previously been concluded that cardioversion is unsuccessful in these patients. Immediate success rates of cardioversion were high in general and remained high initially in heart failure and obese patients, but there was a drop-off in longer term success in all groups.