Screening Education And Recognition in Community Pharmacies of Atrial Fibrillation for prevention of stroke (SEARCH-AF)

This trial involves the use of a handheld single-lead ECG taken on an iPhone with a special case, the AliveCor Heart Monitor for iPhone (iECG), in community pharmacies.

SEARCH-AF is a cross-sectional study of community-based screening to identify undiagnosed atrial fibrillation (AF) and will evaluate the feasibility and cost-effectiveness of screening for AF using a pulse palpation and the iECG device. Ten community pharmacies were recruited and trained to implement the screening protocol, and a total of 1,000 participants were screened.

The primary outcome was the proportion of people newly identified with AF at the completion of the screening program. In addition, process outcomes related to sustainability of the screening program beyond the trial setting, pharmacist knowledge of AF, and rate of uptake of referral to full ECG evaluation and cardiology review were also collected.