Clinical course of atrial fibrillation in older adults: the importance of cardiovascular events beyond stroke
Atrial Fibrillation Thursday, January 9th, 2014Eur Heart J: November 25, 2013
Aims Atrial fibrillation increases the risks of stroke, heart failure, and death, and anticoagulation therapy increases the risk of gastrointestinal haemorrhage. However, the relative event rates for these outcomes are not well described. We sought to define the risks of major clinical events in older adults after a new diagnosis of atrial fibrillation.
Methods and results We undertook a population-based, retrospective cohort study of a nationally representative sample of fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries 65 years or older with incident atrial fibrillation diagnosed between 1999 and 2007. The main outcome measures were mortality and hospitalization or emergency department care for heart failure, myocardial infarction, stroke, or gastrointestinal haemorrhage. Among 186 461 patients with atrial fibrillation and no recent hospitalizations for heart failure, myocardial infarction, stroke, or gastrointestinal haemorrhage, mortality was the most frequent of these major clinical events (19.5% at 1 year; 48.8% at 5 years). Read More
