Falls and Atrial Fibrillation in Elderly Patients

Background: Atrial fibrillation is a common heart rhythm disorder in older adults, and its prevalence has increased rapidly in recent years. The health issues associated with atrial fibrillation are not limited to physiological problems, as it also contributes to an increased risk offalls, which may...

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Published in:Acta Cardiologica Sinica 2013-09, Vol.29 (5), p.436-443
Main Authors: Hung, Chen-Ying, Wu, Tsu-Juey, Wang, Kuo-Yang, Huang, Jin-Long, Loh, El-Wui, Chen, Yi-Ming, Lin, Chu-Sheng, Lin, Ching-Heng, Chen, Der-Yuan, Tang, Yih-Jing
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Arrythmia
Atrial fibrillation
Benzodiazepine
Falls
Hypertension
MEDLINE
Original
SCI
Scopus
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Summary:Background: Atrial fibrillation is a common heart rhythm disorder in older adults, and its prevalence has increased rapidly in recent years. The health issues associated with atrial fibrillation are not limited to physiological problems, as it also contributes to an increased risk offalls, which may be related to cardiovascular co-morbidities and medication use. The aim of this study was to determine which cardiovascular co-morbidities and medication use are associated with falls in older adults with atrial fibrillation. Methods: Four hundred and one patients 75 years of age or older (82.2 土 0.2 years) were enrolled in a geriatric evaluation and management unit in Taiwan. Events associated with patient falls and medication use were recorded, and comprehensive geriatric assessment was conducted during admission. Results: Among the study participants, 66 (16.5%) patients had atrial fibrillation and 234 (58.4%) patients had a history offall. We found a significantly higher prevalence offalls in patients with atrial fibrillation [odds ration (OR) 1.98, 95% confidence interval (Cl) 1.08-3.63, p = 0.026] compared with those without atrial fibrillation. Using multivariate logistic regression, we found that benzodiazepine use (OR 18.22, 95% CI 2.71-122.38, p = 0.003), a history of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (OR 12.18, 95% CI 1.37-108.70, p = 0.025) and hypertension (OR 9.49, 95% CI 1.19-75.57, p = 0.034) were independent factors for falls in atrial fibrillation patients. Conclusions: Adiagnosis ofatrial fibrillation in elderly patients is associated with falls. Benzodiazepine use, history of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation,; with atrial fibrillation. and hypertension were associated with a high falling prevalence among patients
ISSN:1011-6842