Correlation between Left Atrial Strain and Subtle Cardiac Arrhythmias Detected by Holter Monitoring in Non-Cardiac Individual Recovering from COVID-19

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most often observed arrhythmia linked to COVID-19 pneumonia. Analysis of left atrial strain (LAS), a measure of LA contractility, has been applied in numerous therapeutic contexts, has been linked to the onset of AF. Objective: The current studyaimed to focus on correlation between left atrial strain and subtle cardiac arrhythmias detected by holter monitoring in noncardiac individual recovering from COVID-19. Patients and methods: From March 2022 to August 2022, the Cardiology Department of the Faculty of Medicine at Zagazig University conducted a cross-sectional study on all COVID-19 survivors who had no cardiac issues. An automated piece of software was used to analyse the LA strain. Three phases of LA strain were reported: reservoir phase (LASr), conduit phase (LAScd), and contraction phase (LASct). The main result was the onset of AF. Results: A total 76 patients were recruited for the current study. Patients were divided into two groups; Group I 15 patients with AF and Group II 61 Patients without AF. LAVI, LA strain reservoir, LA strain contraction and CRP were the most significant predictors of AF in post COVID patients. Conclusion: We found high incidence of LAS impairment using speckle tracking echocardiography that can predict AF in post COVID patients.