Are Prolonged Ventricular Pauses in Atrial Fibrillation a Marker of Poor Prognosis?

Cardiology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dorte Marie Stavnem ◽  
Rakin Hadad ◽  
Bjørn Strøier Larsen ◽  
Olav Wendelboe Nielsen ◽  
Mark Aplin Frederiksen ◽  
...  

Background: In patients with atrial fibrillation (AF), the long-term prognosis of long electrocardiographic pauses in the ventricular action is not well-studied. Methods: Consecutive Holter recordings in patients with AF (n=200) between 2009-2011 were evaluated, focusing on pauses of at least 2.5 s. Outcomes of interest were all-cause mortality and pacemaker implantation. Results: Forty-three patients (21.5%) had pauses with a mean of 3.2 s and SD of 0.9 s. After a median follow-up of 99 months (ranging 89-111), 47% (20/43) of the patients with, and 45% (70/157) without pauses were deceased. Pauses of ≥ 2.5 s did not constitute a risk of increased mortality: HR = 0.75; (95% CI: 0.34 - 1.66); p = 0.48. Neither did pauses of ≥ 3.0 s: HR = 0.43; (95% CI: 0.06 - 3.20); p = 0.41. Sixteen percent of patients with pauses underwent pacemaker implantation during follow-up. Only pauses in patients referred to Holter due to syncope and/or dizzy spells were associated with an increased risk of pacemaker treatment: HR = 4.7 (95% CI: 1.4-15.9), p = 0.014, adjusted for age, sex and rate-limiting medication. Conclusion: In patients with AF, prolonged electrocardiographic pauses of ≥ 2.5 s or ≥ 3.0 s are not a marker for increased mortality in this real-life clinical study.

Author(s):  
Hisashi Ogawa ◽  
Yoshimori An ◽  
Kenjiro Ishigami ◽  
Syuhei Ikeda ◽  
Kosuke Doi ◽  
...  

Abstract Aims Oral anticoagulants reduce the risk of ischaemic stroke but may increase the risk of major bleeding in atrial fibrillation (AF) patients. Little is known about the clinical outcomes of patients after a major bleeding event. This study assessed the outcomes of AF patients after major bleeding. Methods and results The Fushimi AF Registry is a community-based prospective survey of the AF patients in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Japan. Analyses were performed on 4304 AF patients registered by 81 institutions participating in the Fushimi AF Registry. We investigated the demographics and outcomes of AF patients who experienced major bleeding during follow-up period. During the median follow-up of 1307 days, major bleeding occurred in 297 patients (6.9%). Patients with major bleeding were older than those without (75.6 vs. 73.4 years; P < 0.01). They were more likely to have pre-existing heart failure (33.7% vs. 26.7%; P < 0.01), history of major bleeding (7.7% vs. 4.0%; P < 0.01), and higher mean HAS-BLED score (2.05 vs.1.73; P < 0.01). On landmark analysis, ischaemic stroke or systemic embolism occurred in 17 patients (3.6/100 person-years) after major bleeding and 227 patients (1.7/100 person-years) without major bleeding, with an adjusted hazard ratio (HR) of 1.93 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.06–3.23; P = 0.03]. All-cause mortality occurred in 97 patients with major bleeding (20.0/100 person-years) and 709 (5.1/100 person-years) patients without major bleeding [HR 2.73 (95% CI, 2.16–3.41; P < 0.01)]. Conclusion In this community-based cohort, major bleeding is associated with increased risk of subsequent all-cause mortality and thromboembolism in the long-term amongst AF patients. Trial registration https://www.umin.ac.jp/ctr/index.htm. Unique identifier: UMIN000005834. (last accessed 22 October 2020)


2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (Supplement_2) ◽  
Author(s):  
M Proietti ◽  
M Vitolo ◽  
S Harrison ◽  
G.A Dan ◽  
A.P Maggioni ◽  
...  

Abstract Introduction Frailty is a major health determinant for cardiovascular disease. Thus far, data on frailty in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) are limited. Aims To evaluate frailty in a large contemporary cohort of European AF patients, the relationship with oral anticoagulant (OAC) prescription and with risk of all-cause death. Methods We analyzed patients enrolled in the ESC-EHRA EORP-AF General Long-Term Registry. A 38-items frailty index (FI) was derived from baseline characteristics according to the accumulation of deficits model proposed by Rockwood and Mitnitsky. All-cause mortality was the primary study outcome. Results Out of the 11096 AF enrolled patients, data for evaluating frailty were available for 6557 (59.1%) patients who have been included in this analysis (mean [SD] age 68.9 [11.5], 37.7% females). Baseline median [IQR] CHA2DS2-VASc and HAS-BLED were 3 [2–4] and 1 [1–2], respectively. At baseline, median [IQR] FI was 0.16 (0.12–0.23), with 1276 (19.5%) patients considered “not-frail” (FI<0.10), 4033 (61.5%) considered “pre-frail” (FI 0.10–0.25) and 1248 (19.0%) considered “frail” (FI≥0.25). Age, female prevalence, CHA2DS2-VASc and HAS-BLED progressively increased across the FI classes (all p<0.001). Use of OAC progressively increased among FI classes; after adjustments FI was not associated with OAC prescription (odds ratio [OR]: 1.09, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.98–1.19 for each 0.10 FI increase). Conversely, FI was directly associated with vitamin K antagonist (VKA) use (OR: 1.26, 95% CI: 1.18–1.34 for each 0.10 FI increase) and inversely associated with non-VKA OACs (NOACs) use (OR: 0.82, 95% CI: 0.77–0.88). FI was significantly correlated with CHA2DS2-VASc (Rho= 0.516, p<0.001). Over a median [IQR] follow-up of 731 [704–749] days, there were 569 (8.7%) all-cause death events. Kaplan-Meier curves [Figure] showed an increasing cumulative risk for all-cause death according to FI categories. A Cox multivariable analysis, adjusted for age, sex, type of AF and use of OAC, found that increasing FI as a continuous variable was associated with an increased risk of all-cause death (hazard ratio [HR]: 1.56, 95% CI: 1.40–1.73 for each 0.10 FI increase). An association with all-cause death risk was found across the FI categories (HR: 1.71, 95% CI: 1.23–2.38 and HR: 2.88, 95% CI: 2.02–4.12, respectively for pre-frail and frail patients compared to non-frail ones). FI was also predictive of all-cause death (c-index: 0.660, 95% CI: 0.637–0.682; p<0.001). Conclusions In a European contemporary cohort of AF patients the burden of frailty is significant, with almost 1 out of 5 patients found to be “frail”. Frailty influenced significantly the choice of OAC therapy and was associated with (and predictive of) all-cause death at follow-up. Kaplan-Meier Curves Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding source: Private company. Main funding source(s): Since the start of EORP programme, several companies have supported it with unrestricted grants.


2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (Supplement_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
M Debski ◽  
M Ulman ◽  
A Zabek ◽  
K Boczar ◽  
K Haberka ◽  
...  

Abstract Background In patients undergoing permanent DDD cardiac pacing, the maintenance of atrial contractility is important to ensure adequate ventricular filling and to guarantee an optimal ventricular ejection capacity. Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a major risk factor for thromboembolic events and is associated with increased cardiovascular and all-cause mortality. Purpose To analyse the risk factors for development of permanent AF in patients with DDD pacemaker and determine its association with all-cause mortality in long-term follow-up. Methods Retrospectively collected records comprised all consecutive patients who underwent primary DDD pacemaker implantation at single-centre between 1984–2014. Patients who were lost to follow-up after hospital discharge were excluded from analysis. Follow-up was completed on 31st August 2016. Definition of permanent AF was the occurence of AF which persisted until the end of follow-up. Data on patients' survival status and deceased patients' dates of death were collected from the national death registration system. Information of death date was available as of 31st August 2016. The endpoint was all-cause mortality. Results We included a total of 3771 patients and 24,432 patient-years of follow-up and exluded 157 (4%) patients who were lost to follow-up after hospital discharge. Mean follow-up was 78±62 months (max. 370 months), 1761 (47%) were female. Paroxysmal AF prior to DDD pacemaker implantation was detected in 1276 patients (34%). During entire follow-up 717 (19%) patients developed permanent AF in a mean period of 55±50 months. Analysis of risk factors for development of permanent AF is presented in Figure. Cox proportional hazards model with time-dependent covariate showed that development of permanent AF significantly increased mortality during follow-up (HR = 1.885, 95% CI, 1.654–2.148, P<0.001; with adjustment for age at implantation and sex: HR = 1.475, 95% CI, 1.294–1.682, P<0.001). Permanent AF risk factors Conclusions Female sex protected against permanent AF development, whereas age at implantation, history of paroxysmal AF and apical position of RV lead increased the risk. Permanent AF was significantly increasing the all-cause mortality, even after adjustment for age at implant and gender. Acknowledgement/Funding None


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mingxing Li ◽  
Yingying Gao ◽  
Kai Guo ◽  
Zidi Wu ◽  
Yi Lao ◽  
...  

Background: The relationship between fasting hyperglycemia (FHG) and new-onset atrial fibrillation (AF) in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is unclear, and whether their co-occurrence is associated with a worse in-hospital and long-term prognosis than FHG or AF alone is unknown.Objective: To explore the correlation between FHG and new-onset AF in patients with AMI, and their impact on in-hospital and long-term all-cause mortality.Methods: We performed a retrospective cohort study comprising 563 AMI patients. The patients were divided into the FHG group and the NFHG group. The incidence of new-onset AF during hospitalization was compared between the two groups and sub-groups under different Killip grades. Logistic regression was used to assess the association between FHG and new-onset AF. In-hospital mortality and long-term all-cause mortality were compared among patients with FHG, AF, and with both FHG and AF according to 10 years of follow-up information.Results: New-onset AF occurred more frequently in the FHG group than in the NFHG group (21.6 vs. 9.2%, p &lt; 0.001). This trend was observed for Killip grade I (16.6 vs. 6.5%, p = 0.002) and Grade II (17.1 vs. 6.9%, p = 0.005), but not for Killip grade III–IV (40 vs. 33.3%, p = 0.761). Logistic regression showed FHG independently correlated with new-onset AF (OR, 2.56; 95% CI, 1.53–4.30; P &lt; 0.001), and 1 mmol/L increased in fasting glucose was associated with a 5% higher rate of new-onset AF, after adjustment for traditional AF risk factors. AMI patients complicated with both fasting hyperglycemia and AF showed the highest in-hospital mortality and long-term all-cause mortality during an average of 11.2 years of follow-up. Multivariate Cox regression showed FHG combined with AF independently correlated with long-term all-cause mortality after adjustment for other traditional risk factors (OR = 3.13, 95% CI 1.64–5.96, p = 0.001), compared with the group with neither FHG nor new-onset AF.Conclusion: FHG was an independent risk factor for new-onset AF in patients with AMI. AMI patients complicated with both FHG and new-onset AF showed worse in-hospital and long-term all-cause mortality than with FHG or AF alone.


Circulation ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 142 (Suppl_3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcella Meykler ◽  
Sahar Abdelmoneim ◽  
Emelie Rosenberg ◽  
Bimal Patel ◽  
Bharath Reddy ◽  
...  

Introduction: New onset postoperative atrial fibrillation (POAF) is a common complication after cardiac surgery that is associated with an increased risk for stroke and all-cause mortality. Long term data on POAF recurrence and anticoagulation remains sparse. We aimed to characterize the natural progression and recurrence of new onset POAF during a long-term follow up post cardiac surgery utilizing continuous event monitoring. Methods: This is a single-center, prospective observational study evaluating 42 patients undergoing cardiac surgery and diagnosed during indexed admission with new onset, transient POAF who were discharged in sinus rhythm between May 2015 and December 2019. Prior to discharge, all patients received implantable loop recorders (ILR) for continuous monitoring. Study outcomes were the presence and timing of AF recurrence (first and repeated AF recurrence), all-cause mortality and cerebrovascular accidents (CVA). Results: Forty-two patients [mean age 67.6± 9.6 years, 74% male, mean CHADS 2- VASc 3.5±1.5] were evaluated during a mean follow-up of 1.7 ± 1.2 years. AF recurrence after discharge occurred in 30 patients (71%). Twenty-four of these 30 patients (80%) had their first AF recurrence within the first month, 3 (10%) patients during months 1-12, and 3 (10%) patients beyond 1 year. Repeated AF recurrence occurred in 13 (43%) patients between 1 and 12-months. Beyond one year of follow-up, 5 (17%) patients had either their first AF recurrence (3) or repeated AF recurrence (2). During follow-up, there was one death ((-) AF recurrence) and two CVAs ((+) AF recurrence). Conclusions: In this study of continuous monitoring with ILR , the recurrence of AF in patients who develop transient POAF is common. Seventy percent of patients had either their first AF recurrence 6 (20%) or repeated episodes of recurrent AF 15 (50%) after 1-month post-operative follow-up.


2021 ◽  
Vol 42 (Supplement_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
M.R Grubler ◽  
N.D Verheyen ◽  
A Meinitzer ◽  
L Fiedler ◽  
M Tscharre ◽  
...  

Abstract Background/Introduction Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common heart rhythm disturbance, associated with an increased risk of stroke, hospital admissions and mortality, especially in patients with reduced ejection fraction. Among the oldest medications used for heart-rate control is digitalis, but largely due to observational studies showing an increased risk of death it has fallen out of favour. Recently newer clinical trials reported that the treatment with digitalis in permanent AF might be superior to beta blocker therapy in regard to functional status and symptom burden. Given this diverging results we attempt to analysis a large cohort of patients facilitating a propensity score matching algorithm. Purpose To assess the associations of digitalis treatment with mortality in patients with increased cardiovascular risk. Methods Patients were derived from a large cohort study including participants from a tertiary care centre who were referred to coronary angiography. The propensity score matching is based on a predefined list of variables, with digitalis as treatment. Matching strategy is nearest neighbour matching and to prove consistency, radius matching (radius = 0.1). For survival analysis we used a Cox proportional hazard regression comparing patients with and without digitalis for all-cause mortality. The analysis is conducted using STATA 13 MP. All patients provided written informed consent and the study was approved by the ethics committee. Results A total of 2457 patients (median age: 63.5 [IQR = 56.3–70.6] years, 30.1% women) referred to coronary angiography, with a median follow up of 9.9 (IQR = 8.5–10.7) years were included. The matching process and the resulting propensity score fulfilled all statistical assumptions and resulted in a balanced cohort. The risk for all-cause mortality was higher among propensity score matched participants not treated with digitalis compared to patients on treatment (n=514) HR 3.03 (95% CI 2.5 to 3.7). Total mortality in patients with AF on digitalis after a median follow-up of 9.9 years was 27.6%. At baseline, only 42.4% of patients with AF were on oral anticoagulation. Conclusions In the present cohort treatment with digitalis was associated with a lower risk of all-cause mortality after long-term follow-up. The patient population has a clinically significant 10-year mortality risk. The results may not apply to other cohorts but may help inform future clinical trials. FUNDunding Acknowledgement Type of funding sources: None.


Author(s):  
Shinwan Kany ◽  
Johannes Brachmann ◽  
Thorsten Lewalter ◽  
Ibrahim Akin ◽  
Horst Sievert ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Non-paroxysmal (NPAF) forms of atrial fibrillation (AF) have been reported to be associated with an increased risk for systemic embolism or death. Methods Comparison of procedural details and long-term outcomes in patients (pts) with paroxysmal AF (PAF) against controls with NPAF in the prospective, multicentre observational registry of patients undergoing LAAC (LAARGE). Results A total of 638 pts (PAF 274 pts, NPAF 364 pts) were enrolled. In both groups, a history of PVI was rare (4.0% vs 1.6%, p = 0.066). The total CHA2DS2-VASc score was lower in the PAF group (4.4 ± 1.5 vs 4.6 ± 1.5, p = 0.033), while HAS-BLED score (3.8 ± 1.1 vs 3.9 ± 1.1, p = 0.40) was comparable. The rate of successful implantation was equally high (97.4% vs 97.8%, p = 0.77). In the three-month echo follow-up, LA thrombi (2.1% vs 7.3%, p = 0.12) and peridevice leak > 5 mm (0.0% vs 7.1%, p = 0.53) were numerically higher in the NPAF group. Overall, in-hospital complications occurred in 15.0% of the PAF cohort and 10.7% of the NPAF cohort (p = 0.12). In the one-year follow-up, unadjusted mortality (8.4% vs 14.0%, p = 0.039) and combined outcome of death, stroke and systemic embolism (8.8% vs 15.1%, p = 0.022) were significantly higher in the NPAF cohort. After adjusting for CHA2DS2-VASc and previous bleeding, NPAF was associated with increased death/stroke/systemic embolism (HR 1.67, 95% CI 1.02–2.72, p = 0.041). Conclusion Atrial fibrillation type did not impair periprocedural safety or in-hospital MACE patients undergoing LAAC. However, after one year, NPAF was associated with higher mortality. Graphic abstract


Angiology ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 000331972110004
Author(s):  
Shuang Wu ◽  
Yan-min Yang ◽  
Jun Zhu ◽  
Jia-meng Ren ◽  
Juan Wang ◽  
...  

We performed a retrospective analysis involving 1269 patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) to evaluate the predictive value of the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) on long-term outcomes. The primary outcomes were all-cause mortality and combined end point events (CEEs). Cox proportional hazards regression analysis and net reclassification improvement (NRI) analysis were performed. During a median follow-up of 3.32 years, 285 deaths and 376 CEEs occurred. With the elevation of the NLR, the incidence of all-cause mortality (2.77, 4.14, 6.12, and 12.18/100 person-years) and CEEs (4.19, 7.40, 8.03, and 15.22/100 person-years) significantly increased. Multivariate Cox analysis indicated that the highest NLR quartile was independently associated with the incidence of all-cause mortality (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.77, 95% CI: 1.19-2.65) and CEEs (HR = 1.66, 95% CI: 1.18-2.33). When the NLR was analyzed as a continuous variable, a 1-unit increment in log NLR was related to 134% increased risk of all-cause mortality and 119% increased risk of CEEs. Net reclassification improvement analysis revealed that NLR significantly improved risk stratification for all-cause death and CEEs by 15.0% and 9.6%, respectively. Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio could be an independent predictor of long-term outcomes in patients with AF.


2015 ◽  
Vol 113 (01) ◽  
pp. 185-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chun-Cheng Wang ◽  
Cheng-Li Lin ◽  
Guei-Jane Wang ◽  
Chiz-Tzung Chang ◽  
Fung-Chang Sung ◽  
...  

SummaryWhether atrial fibrillation (AF) is associated with an increased risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE) remains controversial. From Longitudinal Health Insurance Database 2000 (LHID2000), we identified 11,458 patients newly diagnosed with AF. The comparison group comprised 45,637 patients without AF. Both cohorts were followed up to measure the incidence of deep-vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE). Univariable and multivariable competing-risks regression model and Kaplan-Meier analyses with the use of Aelon-Johansen estimator were used to measure the differences of cumulative incidences of DVT and PE, respectively. The overall incidence rates (per 1,000 person-years) of DVT and PE between the AF group and non-AF groups were 2.69 vs 1.12 (crude hazard ratio [HR] = 1.92; 95 % confidence interval [CI] = 1.54-2.39), 1.55 vs 0.46 (crude HR = 2.68; 95 % CI = 1.97-3.64), respectively. The baseline demographics indicated that the members of the AF group demonstrated a significantly older age and higher proportions of comorbidities than non-AF group. After adjusting for age, sex, and comorbidities, the risks of DVT and PE remained significantly elevated in the AF group compared with the non-AF group (adjusted HR = 1.74; 95 %CI = 1.36-2.24, adjusted HR = 2.18; 95 %CI = 1.51-3.15, respectively). The Kaplan-Meier curve with the use of Aelon-Johansen estimator indicated that the cumulative incidences of DVT and PE were both more significantly elevated in the AF group than in the non-AF group after a long-term follow-up period (p<0.01). In conclusion, the presence of AF is associated with increased risk of VTE after a long-term follow-up period.


2017 ◽  
Vol 176 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olaf M Dekkers ◽  
Erzsébet Horváth-Puhó ◽  
Suzanne C Cannegieter ◽  
Jan P Vandenbroucke ◽  
Henrik Toft Sørensen ◽  
...  

Objective Several studies have shown an increased risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) in hyperthyroidism, but most studies have been too small to address the effect of hyperthyroidism on individual cardiovascular endpoints. Our main aim was to assess the association among hyperthyroidism, acute cardiovascular events and mortality. Design It is a nationwide population-based cohort study. Data were obtained from the Danish Civil Registration System and the Danish National Patient Registry, which covers all Danish hospitals. We compared the rate of all-cause mortality as well as venous thromboembolism (VTE), acute myocardial infarction (AMI), ischemic and non-ischemic stroke, arterial embolism, atrial fibrillation (AF) and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in the two cohorts. Hazard ratios (HR) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were estimated. Results The study included 85 856 hyperthyroid patients and 847 057 matched population-based controls. Mean follow-up time was 9.2 years. The HR for mortality was highest in the first 3 months after diagnosis of hyperthyroidism: 4.62, 95% CI: 4.40–4.85, and remained elevated during long-term follow-up (>3 years) (HR: 1.35, 95% CI: 1.33–1.37). The risk for all examined cardiovascular events was increased, with the highest risk in the first 3 months after hyperthyroidism diagnosis. The 3-month post-diagnosis risk was highest for atrial fibrillation (HR: 7.32, 95% CI: 6.58–8.14) and arterial embolism (HR: 6.08, 95% CI: 4.30–8.61), but the risks of VTE, AMI, ischemic and non-ischemic stroke and PCI were increased also 2- to 3-fold. Conclusions We found an increased risk for all-cause mortality and acute cardiovascular events in patients with hyperthyroidism.


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