Association of Exercise-Based Cardiac Rehabilitation with Progression of Paroxysmal to Sustained Atrial Fibrillation



Buckley, Benjamin JR ORCID: 0000-0002-1479-8872, Harrison, Stephanie L ORCID: 0000-0002-8846-0946, Fazio-Eynullayeva, Elnara, Underhill, Paula, Lane, Deirdre A ORCID: 0000-0002-5604-9378, Thijssen, Dick HJ and Lip, Gregory YH ORCID: 0000-0002-7566-1626
(2021) Association of Exercise-Based Cardiac Rehabilitation with Progression of Paroxysmal to Sustained Atrial Fibrillation. JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MEDICINE, 10 (3). 435-.

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Abstract

Progression of atrial fibrillation (AF) is associated with worsened prognosis for cardiovascular events and mortality. Exercise-based-cardiac rehabilitation programmes have shown preliminary promise for primary and secondary prevention of AF. Yet, such interventions are typically reserved for patients with acute coronary syndrome or undergoing revascularization. Using a retrospective cohort design, the present study investigated the association of exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation on the progression of paroxysmal to sustained AF, compared to propensity-matched controls. Patients with a diagnosis of paroxysmal AF were compared between those with and without an electronic medical record of exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation within 6-months of diagnosis. Using cox regression models, we ascertained odds of 2-year incidence for AF progression. This cohort of 9808 patients with paroxysmal AF demonstrated that exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation was associated with 26% lower odds of AF progression (odds ratio 0.74, 95% CI 0.66-0.83) compared to propensity-matched controls. This beneficial effect seemed to vary across patient subgroups. In conclusion, findings revealed that exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation was associated with significantly lower odds of progression from paroxysmal to sustained AF at 2-years follow-up compared to propensity-matched controls.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: atrial fibrillation, cardiac rehabilitation, secondary prevention, disease progression, rehabilitation
Divisions: Faculty of Health and Life Sciences
Faculty of Health and Life Sciences > Institute of Life Courses and Medical Sciences
Depositing User: Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited: 22 Jun 2021 09:48
Last Modified: 18 Jan 2023 22:33
DOI: 10.3390/jcm10030435
Open Access URL: https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm10030435
Related URLs:
URI: https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3127289