Complications from Atrial Fibrillation

So what are the early and long-term risks of having atrial fibrillation? Well at the onset of atrial fibrillation the irregularity of the heart may be felt as palpitations with an irregular beating within the chest and this may be quite rapid. That is usually the main presenting symptom but patients can also experience shortness of breath, they can also have dizzy spells. In the longer term the main risk of having atrial fibrillation is the stroke risk and this comes about because of the irregularity of the beating of the upper chambers of the heart and that irregularity can cause blood clots to form within the chamber and it's when these blood clots go to the brain that that causes a stroke and so this is the main risk.