Key result
Heavy alcohol consumption of more than 14 drinks per week significantly increased the risk of atrial fibrillation (HR 1.26), with the increased risk observed primarily in men rather than women.
Why the study?
AF is one of the most common arrhythmias in clinical practice, and alcohol consumption has been linked to its occurrence.
Does alcohol consumption increase the incidence of atrial fibrillation in men and women?
Meta-Analysis (n=396,717)
Does alcohol consumption increase the incidence of atrial fibrillation in men and women?
Hazard Ratio: 1.26 (95% CI 1.16–1.37)
p-value: p=<0.01
Heavy alcohol consumption is associated with a significantly increased risk of atrial fibrillation in men, but no significant association was found in women at any consumption level.
May support counseling on alcohol reduction for AF prevention; leaves open causal effects pending RCTs.
Background : Atrial fibrillation (AF) is one of the most common arrhythmias in clinical practice. Alcohol consumption has been linked to the occurrence of AF. Methods : A comprehensive search of electronic databases (PubMed, Cochrane Library, OVID, Google scholar, and Web of Science) was performed. The search yielded a total of 1177 articles, and 12 cohort studies from the total were included in the meta-analysis. The effects of different doses of alcohol consumption on the risk of AF in men and women were compared using hierarchical analysis. Dose-response curves of alcohol consumption and risk of AF were plotted for the two groups according to sex. Results : The risk of AF increased with increased alcohol consumption in both men and women. In the male population, light-moderate alcohol consumption did not increase the risk of AF (HR: 1.07, 95%CI: 0.92-1.23, P=0.38), while heavy alcohol consumption significantly increased the risk of AF (HR: 1.38, 95%CI: 1.23-1.54, P<0.01). In the female population, the risk of AF was not significantly increased by either light-moderate or heavy alcohol consumption (light- moderate drink: HR: 1.00, 95%CI: 0.92-1.10, P=0.95; heavy drink: HR: 1.05, 95%CI: 0.90-1.23, P=0.55). Conclusions : In women, the risk of AF was not associated with any degree of alcohol consumption while high levels of alcohol consumption significantly increased the risk of AF in men.
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Zhang et al. (2020) conducted a meta-analysis in Atrial fibrillation (n=396,717). Heavy alcohol consumption (>14 drinks/week) vs. Light-moderate or no alcohol consumption was evaluated on Incidence of atrial fibrillation (HR 1.26, 95% CI 1.16-1.37, p=<0.01). Heavy alcohol consumption of more than 14 drinks per week significantly increased the risk of atrial fibrillation (HR 1.26), with the increased risk observed primarily in men rather than women.
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