Scientists have issued an urgent warning after new research revealed a third of adults are living with a deadly condition. Atrial fibrillation, a heart condition that causes an irregular and often abnormally fast heart rate, had been thought to affect around a quarter of people before they die.
But a study, using the health records of millions of adults, has found the risk has significantly increased.
Considered a “silent killer” because it does not always display symptoms, it is one contributing factor to strokes and heart failure.
The exact cause of atrial fibrillation is unknown, however, it is more common among those with high blood pressure, as well as people who are obese, smokers and people who drink a lot.
The team, at Aalborg University in Denmark, also found up to two in five sufferers of atrial fibrillation will likely get heart failure. While one in five will suffer a stroke.
As part of the study, they analysed data from more than 3.5 million Danish people aged over 45 who had no history of the condition.
Over a follow-up period of 23 years, they discovered that more than 360,000 participants were diagnosed with atrial fibrillation.
Taking into account influencing factors including income and pre-existing medical conditions such as diabetes or high cholesterol, they then compared rates over two time periods – from 2000 to 2010 and 2011 to 2022.
Overall lifetime risk for atrial fibrillation was calculated at 31 percent between 2011 and 2022, compared to the 24 percent logged in the decade prior.
The risk was “slightly” higher among men compared to women.
Heart failure was found to be the most common complication of the condition, with a risk of 41 percent.
In comparison the odds of suffering a stroke were 21 percent, and the odds for a heart attack were 12 percent.
Researchers said their findings prove a need for better prevention strategies going forward.
Writing in the British Medical Journal, they said: “Our novel quantification of the long-term downstream consequences of atrial fibrillation highlights the critical need for treatments to further decrease stroke risk as well as for heart failure prevention strategies among patients with atrial fibrillation.”
However, they added that further randomised clinical trials and guidelines must “better reflect the needs of the real-world population with atrial fibrillation”.
The study also “raises critical questions for the research and clinical communities about how the growing burden of atrial fibrillation can be stopped”.
Concluding, the team said: “Our nationwide study shows that the lifetime risk of atrial fibrillation increased over the past two decades from one in four to one in three.”
According to the NHS, the most obvious symptom of atrial fibrillation is heart palpitations – “where the heart feels like it’s pounding, fluttering or beating irregularly, often for a few seconds or possibly a few minutes”.
As well as an irregular heartbeat, your heart may also beat very fast – often considerably higher than 100 beats per minute.
You might also experience tiredness and being less able to exercise, breathlessness, feeling faint or lightheaded and chest pain.
The NHS advises getting an urgent GP appointment if:
- You have chest pain that comes and goes
- You have chest pain that goes away quickly but you’re still worried
- You notice a sudden change in your heartbeat
- Your heart rate is consistently lower than 60 or above 100 (particularly if you’re experiencing Other symptoms of atrial fibrillation, such as dizziness and shortness of breath).
