Rarely, atrial flutter can cause blood clots to form in the chambers of the heart. The clot can break off of the wall of the heart chamber, where it is carried through arteries by the bloodstream. As the artery becomes smaller and smaller, eventually the clot becomes stuck in the artery. This completely stops blood from flowing to the tissues supplied by the artery. The most common place that this occurs is in the brain, where the clot causes a stroke. Anticoagulant medications reduce the risk of clot formation.

Anticoagulant medications:

• Aspirin
• Heparin
• Low-molecular weight heparin:
• Dalteparin
• Warfarin (Coumadin)