A recent analysis of Swedish military conscripts found that increased body mass index (BMI) in adolescent men is strongly linked developing early atrial fibrillation (AF) as well as with subsequent worse clinical outcomes after being diagnosed with AF.
The study, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, included 1 704 467 young men (average age of 18.3 years) enrolled in compulsory military service in Sweden from 1969 through 2005. During a median follow-up of 32 years, 36 693 cases of atrial fibrillation were recorded, at an average age of 52.4 years at diagnosis. Compared with men with a baseline BMI of 18.5–<20.0 kg/m2, men with a BMI of 20.0–<22.5 kg/m2 had a 1.06-times higher risk of developing atrial fibrillation and those with a BMI of 40.0–50.0 kg/ m2 had a 3.72-times higher risk.
In men diagnosed with atrial fibrillation who were followed for a median of approximately 6 years, investigators identified 3767 deaths, 3251 cases of heart failure, and 921 cases of ischaemic stroke. Compared with those with a baseline BMI of <20 kg/m2, those with a baseline BMI of >30 kg/m2 had 2.86-times, 3.42-times, and 2.34-times higher risks of these outcomes, respectively.
“Whether screening for atrial fibrillation in early adulthood among individuals with long-standing obesity and more robust follow-up and initiation of anticoagulants in people with long-standing obesity and atrial fibrillation may improve survival needs to be addressed in future randomised trials” said corresponding author Demir Djekic, MD, PhD, of Sahlgrenska University Hospital/Östra, in Sweden.
Source: Wiley
