Magnitude and risks of atrial fibrillation in adult cardiac patients followed at St. Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical College, Addis Ababa: A hospitalbased cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common type of arrhythmia encountered in
clinical practice, for which patients are hospitalized. So far, there were few studies
conducted on AF in Ethiopia and no studies looked at the magnitude and risk factors of
atrial fibrillation among patients with cardiovascular diseases.
Methods: This is a hospital-based cross-sectional study to evaluate the prevalence and
risk factors of atrial fibrillation among patients at the cardiac clinic of St. Paul’s Hospital
Millennium Medical College from February 1st, 2017 to June 30, 2017. A standardized
questionnaire was used to collect information on demography, medical history,
electrocardiogram, echocardiogram, and use of medications via patient interview and
medical record review. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25 was
used to analyze the data. Both binary and multivariable logistic regression was used to
determine the potential risk factors of AF.
Results: A total of 402 cardiac patients were included in the study. Of these, females
accounted for 59.7%. The mean age of the study population was 52 years. The mean
systolic blood pressure was 117 mmHg. The majority (99%) of patients were nonsmokers.
Atrial fibrillation was detected among 175 (43.5%) patients. Of these, 104 (59.4%) patients
had valvular atrial fibrillation. The most frequent causes of cardiovascular diseases among
the participants were rheumatic heart disease and hypertension observed in 50.4% and
16.0% of patients respectively. Dyslipidemia, rheumatic heart disease, and degenerative
valve disease were independently associated with AF in this population.
Conclusion: Atrial fibrillation was prevalent among patients with cardiovascular disease at
St. Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical College. The risk factors independently associated
with AF were valvular heart disease and dyslipidemia.