Table 2

 Occurrence of postoperative AF, length of stay in ICU, and total length of stay in hospital

Pre-operative BBStudy drugOdds ratioDifference between placebo and metoprololp Value*
MetoprololPlacebo
BB, β blocker; ICU, intensive care unit
*Unadjusted p values of interaction (p value tests for an interaction between pre-operative BB use and study drug).
†Complications were: ventricular tachyarrhythmia, stroke, myocardial infarction, embolism, infection, need for a permanent pacemaker, ventilation for >3 days or reintubation.
‡p value calculated after taking logarithm base 10.
Dichotomous outcomes
AFYes29.6%40.1%0.630.065
No38.5%35.0%1.16
Complications†Yes8.8%7.8%1.140.99
No12.1%10.7%1.15
Continuous outcomes
ICU stay (hours)Yes36.1 (30.8)34.9 (25.8)−1.2 (28.5)0.03‡
No53.0 (107.8)31.7 (18.1)−21.3 (75)
Hospital stay (hours)Yes149.2 (57.2)152.4 (61.7)3.3 (59.4)0.002‡
No183.4 (171.2)148.0 (59.2)−35.4 (124.9)
Hospital cost (C$)Yes4755 (2040)4729 (1730)
No5374 (2839)4521 (1508)