...Yes. It is.
And as far as I'm aware, most people with otherwise healthy normal hearts don't have episodes of AFib or flutter when they skip breakfast. If they do, they probably have some sort of underlying predisposition (either some variety of structural heart disease, atrial enlargement, atrial scar with abnormal electrophysiologic mapping, intrinsic conduction system disease, etc). These patients are highly likely to have future episodes of atrial dysrhythmias, and until you have a Holter monitor showing prolonged periods of sinus rhythm without further episodes of AF, I think it is appropriate for them to carry the diagnosis of PAROXYSMAL AFib, and be treated appropriately (anticoagulated, rate controlled, etc).
Now if you tell me someone had an episode of AF or flutter after cardiac surgery, thoracic surgery, major abdominal surgery, etc, when a surgeon was poking at the heart, there are massive fluid shifts, inotropic drugs on board, neurohormonal activation, blah blah blah... Sure, I would buy the argument that these patients aren't necessarily the same as someone who is in and out of AF at home while sitting on the couch, and it would be "unfair" to label them as having paroxysmal AF forever. They're probably more likely to develop paroxysmal AF down the road, since they've shown that they have arrhythmogenic substrate, but that's just my supposition.
