Atrial fibrillation in a tertiary care institute – A prospective study

Objective: Atrial fibrillation is the commonest sustained arrhythmia. In western countries the common causes of atrial fibrillation are hypertensive heart disease, dilated cardiomyopathy, and coronary heart disease. Rheumatic heart disease being still common in India, we studied its contribution to atrial fibrillation. Material and methods: 137 consecutive patients of atrial fibrillation coming to our hospital were subjected to echocardiography to determine the cause. Results: Out of 137 patients with atrial fibrillation, 76 were female (55.47%) and 61 were male (44.43%). Mean age was 51.24±15.36 years. Commonest cause of AF was rheumatic heart disease found in 84 (61.31%) patients. Next common causes were hypertensive heart disease in 14 (10.2%) patients and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in 14 (10.2%) patients. Mean left atrial size was 47.8±12.25 mm. Conclusion: In our study of patients coming from a rural back ground of North India, more than 60% patients of AF are due to RHD. Hypertensive heart disease and COPD are the next common causes