Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common arrhythmia with significant morbidity and mortality. Exacerbated by the aging population, the prevalence of AF is gradually increasing. Accurate evaluation of structure and function of left atrium (LA) has important prognostic significance in patients with AF. Echocardiography is the imaging technique of first choice to assess LA structure and function due to its better availability, accessibility and safety over cardiac computed tomography and cardiac magnetic resonance. Therefore, the aim of this review is to summarize the recent research progress of evaluating LA size by three-dimensional echocardiography and LA function by speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) in predicting the occurrence and recurrence of AF and determining the risk of stroke in AF. In addition, we summarized the role of traditional echocardiography in detecting AF patients that are at high risk of heart failure or cardiovascular death.
Keywords: atrial fibrillation; echocardiography; left atrium structure and function; speckle tracking echocardiography; three-dimensional echocardiography.