High rate of mortality in Spanish community-dwelling population aged 85 with atrial fibrillation after three years of follow-up: The Octabaix study.

AIM

To assess the possible association between three-year global mortality and atrial fibrillation (AF) in 328 community-dwelling participants aged 85 at baseline.

METHODS

Sociodemographic data, comorbidity and geriatric assessment tools, thromboembolic risk, and AF therapy were assessed. We compared the patients who survived with those who died.

RESULTS

At baseline, 41 (12.5%) of participants had permanent AF, and 13 of them died (31.7%) after the three-year follow-up period compared with 44 (15.3%) of the rest of cohort (P = 0.01). Cox regression analysis identified two significant clinical variables as independent predictors of three-year risk of global mortality: Lawton Index (hazard ratio 0.82, 95% confidence interval 0.75-0.91) and AF (hazard ratio 1.90, 95% confidence interval 1.01-3.56). None of the other of variables evaluated showed predictive value of global mortality in the AF patients.

CONCLUSION

In oldest old community-dwelling participants, AF is an independent risk factor for global mortality after a three-year follow-up period.