November 2, 2024

Alarming Findings: Atrial Fibrillation Is More Common and Dangerous Than Previously Thought

Recent research study from UPMC has shown that atrial fibrillation is more extreme and common in individuals under 65 than formerly believed, leading to greater rates of serious health issues and lower survival rates, demanding additional studies for better treatment options.Atrial fibrillation (Afib), a common type of arrhythmia that is on the rise in people under the age of 65, is more harmful in this progressively more youthful population than previously thought, according to a new research study just recently published in Circulation Arrhythmia and Electrophysiology and authored by physician-scientists at the UPMC Heart and Vascular Institute.The research study, which is amongst the very first to take a look at a big group of Afib patients younger than 65 in the U.S., found that these more youthful clients were more likely to be hospitalized for heart stroke, heart, or failure attack and had significantly greater rates of comorbidity and mortality, compared to gender-matched and similarly aged individuals who do not have Afib. There truly hasnt been any information to back that up,” stated lead author Dr. Aditya Bhonsale, M.D., M.H.S, a UPMC heart electrophysiologist in HVIs Division of Cardiology who is likewise an assistant teacher of medicine at the University of Pittsburgh.Research Approach and Patient Data”At UPMC, weve been seeing a lot more young clients with Afib in recent years and have been interested in comprehending the real-world scientific course of these people. As a payer-provider with patient records throughout more than 40 healthcare facilities, UPMC was distinctively placed to ask this concern, which no one has been able to ask before,” Bhonsale added.Drawing from the electronic health records of 67,221 UPMC clients seeking care for Afib from 2010 through 2019, the researchers discovered that more than a quarter of them (17,335) were under the age of 65, a stark contrast to the 2% prevalence typically estimated.