Follow-up
Patients were arranged for outpatient clinical visits at the 3rd, 6th and 12thmonth after discharge, followed by yearly telephone communication. Extra visits were required in symptomatic patients. Holter recording was performed in all patients on the 3rd, 6th and 12th month. Recurrence was defined as any documented atrial arrhythmias longer than 30 seconds after a 3-month blanking period.