New risk factors for atrial fibrillation: causes of 'not-so-lone atrial fibrillation'

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a prevalent arrhythmia in patients with cardiovascular disease. The classical risk factors for developing AF include hypertension, valvular disease, (ischaemic) cardiomyopathy, diabetes mellitus, and thyroid disease. In some patients with AF, no underlying (cardiovascular...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Europace (London, England) England), 2008-06, Vol.10 (6), p.668-673
Main Authors: Schoonderwoerd, Bas A., Smit, Marcelle D., Pen, Lucas, Van Gelder, Isabelle C.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alcoholism - mortality
Atrial Fibrillation - mortality
Comorbidity
Genetic Predisposition to Disease - epidemiology
Humans
Hypertension - mortality
Incidence
Inflammation - mortality
Risk Assessment - methods
Risk Factors
Sleep Apnea Syndromes - mortality
Survival Analysis
Survival Rate
Citations: Items that cite this one
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Summary:Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a prevalent arrhythmia in patients with cardiovascular disease. The classical risk factors for developing AF include hypertension, valvular disease, (ischaemic) cardiomyopathy, diabetes mellitus, and thyroid disease. In some patients with AF, no underlying (cardiovascular) pathology is present and the aetiology remains unknown. This condition is known as lone AF. However, in recent years, other factors playing a role in the genesis of AF have gained attention, including obesity, sleep apnoea, alcohol abuse and other intoxications, excessive sports practice, latent hypertension, genetic factors, and inflammation. In this review, we address these 'new risk factors' (i.e. as opposed to the classical risk factors) and the mechanisms by which they lead to AF.
ISSN:1099-5129
1532-2092
DOI:10.1093/europace/eun124