A family history of atrial fibrillation or flutter significantly increased the odds of the condition in first-degree relatives, with an OR of 1.95 for affected parents and 3.08 for affected siblings.
Case-Control (n=300,586)
Yes
Does a family history of AF/AFl increase the odds of developing AF/AFl in first-degree relatives?
A family history of atrial fibrillation or flutter significantly increases the risk of the condition in first-degree relatives, particularly in multiplex families and premature cases.
Odds Ratio: 1.95 (95% CI 1.89–2)
BACKGROUND: Although the heritability of atrial fibrillation/atrial flutter (AF/AFl) has been determined, the familial risk in multiplex families is unclear. The main aim of this nationwide study was to determine the familial risk of AF/AFl in multiplex families. METHODS AND RESULTS: We examined the familial risk of AF/AFl in the entire Swedish population. We linked Multigeneration Register data on individuals aged 0 to 76 years with Hospital Discharge Register data for 1987-2008 and Outpatient Register data for 2001-2008 to compare AF/AFl risk among relatives of all 300 586 individuals with AF/AFl with that among relatives of unaffected individuals. We used conditional logistic regression to investigate differences in exposure between cases and controls. Parents (odds ratio OR 1.95 95% CI 1.89 to 2.00) and siblings (OR=3.08 3.00 to 3.16) of cases had higher odds of AF/AFl than did parents and siblings of controls. AF/AFl ORs were increased in both sexes. For 2% of cases, both parents had AF/AFl, compared with only 0.7% of controls (OR=3.60 3.30 to 3.92). Moreover, 3% of cases had ≥2 siblings with AF/AFl, compared with 1% of controls (OR=5.72 5.28 to 6.19). In premature cases (diagnosed at age <50 years), the ORs were 5.04 (4.36 to 5.82) and 8.51 (6.49 to 11.15) for AF/AFl in both parents and AF/AFl in ≥2 siblings, respectively. The overall spouse OR was 1.16 (1.13 to 1.19). CONCLUSIONS: Family history of AF/AFl increases the odds of AF/AFl in first-degree relatives. High familial risks were observed in multiplex families.
Zöller et al. (Wed,) conducted a case-control in Atrial Fibrillation/Atrial Flutter (n=300,586). Family history of AF/AFl (affected parents) vs. No family history of AF/AFl was evaluated on Atrial fibrillation/atrial flutter (OR 1.95, 95% CI 1.89-2.00). A family history of atrial fibrillation or flutter significantly increased the odds of the condition in first-degree relatives, with an OR of 1.95 for affected parents and 3.08 for affected siblings.