DECAF trial challenges advice to avoid coffee after atrial fibrillation diagnosis

A randomized clinical trial known as DECAF is challenging long-standing medical advice that suggests patients with atrial fibrillation or atrial flutter should avoid coffee and caffeine.

In the study, which included 200 regular coffee drinkers in Australia, Canada, and the United States, participants underwent electrical cardioversion to restore normal heart rhythm. Those assigned to consume at least one cup of caffeinated coffee or an espresso shot daily showed a 39 percent lower hazard of clinically detected recurrence over six months compared to those who abstained from caffeine entirely.

Researchers from the University of California, San Francisco, and the University of Adelaide, supported by the National Institutes of Health, reported that recurrence occurred in 47% of the coffee-consuming group versus 64% of the abstinence group. The findings, presented at the American Heart Association's annual meeting and published in JAMA, suggest that moderate daily caffeine intake does not increase adverse events in these patients and may actually be associated with lower recurrence rates.