Atrial fibrillation (AFib) and atrial flutter (AFL) are becoming more and more common in the United States as time goes, according to a new study published in the American Journal of Cardiology. Due to an aging population and improved surveillance, such an increase is expected, the authors explained—but the data still revealed numerous findings worth exploring.
The research team behind this analysis evaluated information from the Global Burden of Disease database, focusing on the combined incidence rates for AFib and AFL in every U.S. state and Washington, D.C., from 1990 to 2017.
Overall, they found, the mean 2017 age-standardized incidence rate for AFib and AFL was 92 per 100,000 people for men and 62 per 100,000 people for women. The mean 2017 age-standardized death rate for AFib and AFL, meanwhile, was 5.8 per 100,000 people for men and 4.4 per 100,000 people for women.
These are 6 other key findings from the analysis:
1. For men, incidence rates in 2017 were the highest in New England.
Four New England states had the nation’s highest incidence rates of 2017 among men: Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Main and Connecticut.
Looking at data for women, however, the four states with the highest incidence rates were Ohio, West Virginia, Louisiana and Delaware.
2. Incidence rates in 2017 were up everywhere in the United States—with one exception.
The incidence rates for every U.S. state increased from 1990 to 2017. In Washington, D.C., however, the rate actually dropped among both men and women.
3. Incidence rates are increasing at a more rapid rate among women than men.
This was true for death rates among women as well, the authors observed.
4. Death rates in 2017 were up everywhere in the United States—again, with one exception.
In Alaska, the death rate from AFib and AFL was down among both men and women compared to 1990. In all other states, the death rate had gone up.
5. 2001 was a significant year in the history of this trend.
“Unlike prior studies, this study for the first time shows an inflection point in 2001 at which time there was a significant increase in the trend for both AFib/AFL incidence and mortality in both genders across most states,” wrote lead author Augustin J. DeLago, MD, of the department of medicine at Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and colleagues. “The explanation for this finding would be speculative and outside the scope of this study. Nevertheless, this key finding has important public health implications and underscores the necessity of understanding the current epidemiology of AFib/AFL.”
The full study from DeLago et al. is available here.
Michael has more than 16 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.