Afib more dangerous for patients under 65 than previously thought, UPMC study finds

PITTSBURGH — Atrial fibrillation (Afib) is more dangerous in younger people than previously thought, a new study by UPMC physician-scientists finds.

The study is the first to examine a large group of patients under 65 in the United States.

It found that younger patients were more likely to be hospitalized for heart failure, stroke or heart attack and had higher rates of comorbidity and death.

“Common knowledge among cardiologists is that, in people under 65, Afib is extremely uncommon and not detrimental. But there really hasn’t been any data to back that up,” said lead author Dr. Aditya Bhonsale, M.D., M.H.S, a UPMC cardiac electrophysiologist in HVI’s Division of Cardiology who is also an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Pittsburgh.

UPMC said there has been an increase in younger Afib patients in recent years.

“We are optimistic that data from this study will foster future investigation to evaluate optimal therapies for patients with Afib,” said senior author Sandeep Jain, M.D., director of cardiac electrophysiology in HVI’s Division of Cardiology who is also a professor of medicine at the University of Pittsburgh.

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