Aims: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common long-standing arrhythmia in the adult population. This study aimed to assess which factors increase the likelihood of developing AF, and whether AF is associated with worsened survival in the new millennium.
Methods: 6299 participants from a nationally representative Finnish health cohort were followed from 2000 to 2014. The mortality and risk of developing AF were analyzed using Cox regression and logistic regression models.
Results: The overall prevalence of AF in baseline ECG was 1.5%. During the 13 year follow- up, 16.9% of those without baseline AF and as many as 85% of those with AF at baseline died. AF increased the risk of dying 5-fold in unadjusted and 1.86-fold in adjusted analysis. In addition, age, gender, hypertension, heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), diabetes and smoking were associated with increased mortality in the Cox regression model. During the first 10 years of follow-up, male gender, age, BMI and alcohol consumption were associated with developing AF.
Conclusion: AF is clearly linked with mortality even after the emergence of modern anticoagulation therapy. BMI and alcohol consumption were the only modifiable health factors associated with the development of AF.
