A pooled analysis of the incidence and mortality risk of atrial fibrillation in patients with COVID-19

• Published in: PeerJ (San Francisco, CA) CA), 2024-10, Vol.12, p.e18330, Article e18330
• Main Authors: Shen, Nan-Nan, Wang, Jia-Liang, Liu, Xin-Wen, Fu, Yong-Ping, Chen, Xue-Fang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aged; Asia; Atrial fibrillation; Atrial Fibrillation - epidemiology; Atrial Fibrillation - etiology; Cardiology; Complications and side effects; COVID-19; COVID-19 - complications; COVID-19 - mortality; Epidemiology; Humans; Incidence; Infection; Middle Aged; Mortality; Patient outcomes; Prevalence; Risk Factors; SARS-CoV-2
• ISSN: 2167-8359; 2167-8359
• DOI: 10.7717/peerj.18330

There exist serious cardiovascular complications subsequent to SARS-Cov2 infection (COVID-19); however, the association between COVID-19 and atrial fibrillation (AF) remains to be elucidated. We aimed to assess the prevalence of AF among COVID-19 patients and its associated risk of death. The present systematic review was performed in accordance with the PRISMA guidelines. The protocol was registered with CRD42022306523. A comprehensive literature search was performed across PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane databases to identify studies reporting on the prevalence of pre-existing or new-onset fibrillation (AF), and/or the associated clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19 from January 2020 to December 2023. The random-effect model was used to estimate the prevalence of AF and its related mortality. A total of 80 studies, including 39,062,868 COVID-19 patients, were identified in the present investigation. The prevalence rates of pre-existing AF or new-onset AF were 10.5% (95% CI [9.3-11.7%]) or 10.3% (95% CI [6.2-14.5%]), respectively. Subgroup analysis revealed a two fold higher incidence of AF in older patients (≥65 years) compared to younger patients (