Announcement of new article publication Cardiovascular innovations and applications journal. The long-term effects of sustained weight gain or loss on the risk of atrial fibrillation (AF) remain unclear. The authors of this article investigated the association between long-term weight change and the development of atrial fibrillation.
64,119 participants without AF from the Kailuan cohort whose height and weight were measured in 2006-2007 and 2010-2011 were tested. Weight change was assessed as change in body mass index (BMI), body weight, and percent weight change. The occurrence of atrial fibrillation was confirmed according to the International Classification of Diseases code and biennial electrocardiogram. Multivariable Cox models estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs).
With a median follow-up of 10.0 years, 583 participants developed atrial fibrillation. Compared with a stable BMI (-3 to 3 kg/m2), a decrease in BMI ≥3 kg/m2 was associated with a decreased risk of AF (HR 0.61, 95% CI 0.41-0.91), whereas an increase in BMI ≥3 kg/m2 was associated with increased risk (HR 1.41, 95% CI 1.01-1.97). Similarly, weight loss ≥10 kg was associated with decreased AF risk (HR 0.54, 95% CI 0.31-0.92), whereas weight gain ≥10 kg was associated with increased AF risk (HR 1.66, 95% CI 1.12-2.36). This result was consistent across definitions of rate of change.
Long-term weight gain is associated with increased risk of AF, whereas sustained weight loss is associated with decreased risk, supporting the importance of long-term weight management for AF prevention.
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Reference magazines:
Liu, H. et al. (2026) Association between weight change and atrial fibrillation risk: Results from the Kailuan Cohort Study in China. CVIA. DOI: 10.15212/CVIA.2026.0017. https://www.scienceopen.com/hosted-document?doi=10.15212/CVIA.2026.0017
