DOC News February 1, 2007
Volume 4 Number 2 p. 11
© 2007 American Diabetes Association
Obesity Linked to Atrial Fibrillation Risk
Body mass index (BMI) appears to be strongly correlated with the risk of
atrial fibrillation (AF), particularly sustained episodes of the arrhythmia.
Investigators from Puget Sound Veterans Affairs Health Care System and
University of Washington in Seattle conducted a population-based case-control
study that included 425 people with new-onset AF and 707 people in a control
group. Medical record review provided additional data on cardiovascular risk
factors.
The researchers found that, on average, each unit increment in BMI was
associated with a 3% increase in the risk of AF. When the arrhythmia was
further broken down, they found that each incremental unit of BMI was linked
to a 7% increase in sustained AF that lasted 
6 months, a 3% increase in
intermittent AF, and a 4% increase for transitory AF that lasted 8 days.
Compared with a person with a normal BMI, a person who is obese has about
34% greater risk of AF, while people in the heaviest BMI category have 2.3
times the risk. When diabetes was factored in, the risk per unit of BMI was
reduced, suggesting a mediating effect.
Dublin S, French B, Glazer NL, et al.: Risk of new-onset
atrial fibrillation in relation to body mass index. Arch Intern
Med 166:2322–2328, 2006[Abstract/Free Full Text]
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