How New-Onset Atrial Fibrillation Affects Survival in Healthy Women

Risk for premature death was elevated for both cardiovascular and noncardiovascular causes.

Whereas some studies — particularly the Framingham Heart Study — have shown excess long-term mortality in people with new-onset atrial fibrillation (AF), others have not. Because the Framingham study showed greater excess mortality for women than for men with incident AF, investigators conducted a prospective cohort follow-up of the Women's Health Study to assess mortality in nearly 35,000 women without prior adverse cardiovascular events. The median age at study enrollment was 53 for women without subsequent incident AF. Women who developed incident AF were substantially older (59 at baseline) and had a higher prevalence of hypertension and hypercholesterolemia.

During median follow-up of 15.4 years, 1011 women developed AF, and 63 of them …

Reviewing Author

Thomas L. Schwenk, MD

Disclosures

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Thomas L. Schwenk, MD

Disclosures

Editorial BoardsUpToDate