Pattern of atrial fibrillation and risk of outcomes: The Loire Valley Atrial Fibrillation Project

BACKGROUND: Risk of stroke and thromboembolism (TE) in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) is categorised in stroke risk stratification scores. The role of pattern of NVAF in risk prediction is unclear in contemporary 'real world' cohorts. METHODS AND RESULTS: Patients with NVAF in a four-hospital-institution between 2000 and 2010 were included. Stroke/TE event rates were calculated according to pattern of AF, i.e. paroxysmal, persistent and permanent. Risk factors were investigated by Cox regression. Among 7156 NVAF patients, 4176 (58.4%) patients with paroxysmal, 376 (5.3%) with persistent and 2604 (36.3%) with permanent patterns of NVAF were included. In non-anticoagulated patients, overall stroke/TE event rate per 100 person-years was 1.29 (95% CI 1.13-1.47). Compared with paroxysmal NVAF, rates of stroke/TE, bleeding and all-cause mortality (p