Key result
New-onset ICU atrial fibrillation carries ~11% mortality, with most survivors reverting to sinus rhythm.
Why the study?
New-onset atrial fibrillation is the most common arrhythmia in critically ill patients and is associated with adverse outcomes, often reflecting underlying disease severity and physiological stress. This study aimed to evaluate the incidence, clinical characteristics, and prognostic factors associated with new-onset atrial fibrillation in a tertiary care multidisciplinary ICU.
Cohort (n=475)
No
Answers are grounded in this paper and cite their sources.
In critically ill ICU patients, new-onset atrial fibrillation is common (15.93% incidence) and primarily reflects underlying illness severity, with 87.2% reverting to sinus rhythm by discharge and mortality (10.9%) driven by advanced age, sepsis, renal failure, and higher APACHE II and SOFA scores.
Introduction: New-onset atrial fibrillation (NOAF) is the most common arrhythmia encountered in critically ill patients and is associated with adverse clinical outcomes.In the intensive care unit (ICU, NOAF often shows underlying disease severity and physiological stress rather than an isolated cardiac disorder.This study aimed to evaluate the incidence, clinical characteristics and prognostic factors associated with NOAF in a tertiary care multidisciplinary ICU.Methods: This prospective observational study was done in adult patients admitted to a tertiary care ICU.Patients who developed NOAF during their ICU stay were included.Demographic data, comorbidities, clinical features, interventions, laboratory parameters and severity scores (APACHE II, SOFA and GCS) were recorded.Outcomes assessed included mortality and rhythm status at discharge.Results: NOAF occurred predominantly in older patients, with the highest incidence and mortality observed in the 61-80-year age group.Overall mortality was 10.9%, Farhad Kapadia, Mohita shah https://iaeme.com/Home/journal/IJCCM23 editor@iaeme.comwhile 87.2% of survivors reverted to sinus rhythm by discharge.Sepsis, renal failure, steroid use, thoracic radiation, invasive mechanical ventilation, multiple organ failure and need for renal replacement therapy were significantly associated with increased mortality.Expired patients showed greater physiological and biochemical derangement.Higher APACHE II and SOFA scores and lower GCS scores strongly correlated with mortality and persistent AF.Conclusion: NOAF in the ICU is common and primarily shows the severity of critical illness.Advanced age, organ dysfunction, sepsis and higher severity scores are key predictors of poor outcomes.Early identification and management of high-risk patients may improve prognosis.
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Kapadia et al. (2026) conducted a cohort in New-onset atrial fibrillation in critically ill ICU patients (n=475). New-onset atrial fibrillation was evaluated on ICU mortality. New-onset atrial fibrillation in ICU patients resulted in a 10.9% mortality rate, while 87.2% of survivors reverted to sinus rhythm by discharge.
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