Takeaway
- Young adults whose mother, father, or both have a history of atrial fibrillation (Afib) are at increased risk for the condition themselves and may especially benefit from counseling about cardiovascular disease prevention.
Why this matters
Key results
- During mean 17.3-year follow-up, offspring with parental history of Afib had higher incidences of stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA; 5.2% vs 2.5%) and Afib (1.9% vs 0.3%).
- Offspring with parental history of Afib had higher:
- Unadjusted stroke/TIA risk (HR, 1.11; 95% CI, 1.04-1.18).
- Unadjusted Afib risk (HR, 1.75; 95% CI, 1.55-1.97).
- Prevalence of other cardiovascular risk factors (e.g., hypertension, diabetes, alcohol misuse).
- In adjusted analysis, parental Afib was still significantly associated with Afib risk in offspring (HR, 1.61; 95% CI, 1.43-1.82) but not with stroke/TIA risk.
Study design
- Canadian population-based retrospective cohort study of 325,333 offspring initially aged ≥18 years having ≥1 linked parent (total 582,195 parents).
- Main outcomes: stroke/TIA, Afib in offspring.
- Funding: Alberta Health Services Chair in Cardiovascular Outcomes Research at the University of Alberta; Department of Community Health Sciences at University of Manitoba.
Limitations
- Reliance on administrative data.
- Possible selection, misclassification biases.
- Lack of independent validation of diagnoses.
References
References
