Postoperative arrhythmias are a problem that most doctors associate with cardiothoracic surgery, but they may also complicate major abdominal surgery. The incidence depends on the type of operation and the extent of cardiac monitoring after surgery (arrhythmias are more likely to be detected in patients with continuous monitoring as opposed to intermittent monitoring). Rates ranged from 4% in a mixed cohort of patients having major general, vascular, and orthopaedic surgery to 20% in patients having elective colorectal surgery.1 2 Most of the arrhythmias are atrial in origin.1 2

Arrhythmias are associated with a longer post-operative stay and increased mortality,3 4 but few papers deal with postoperative arrhythmias, and their methodological quality is poor, with only a handful of prospective series. This contrasts with the considerable amount of work done on other complications of major abdominal surgery, such as anastomotic leakage. …