Year: 2020
Type: review
Abstract: Atrial fibrillation (AF) remains a growing problem in the United States and worldwide, imposing a high individual and health system burden, including increased resource consumption due to repeated hospitalizations, stroke, dementia, heart failure, and death. This comprehensive review summarizes the most recent data on sex-related differences in risks associated with AF. Women with AF have increased risk of stroke and death compared to men, and possible reasons for this disparity are explored. Women also continue to have worse symptoms and quality of life, and poorer outcomes with stroke prevention, as well as with rate and rhythm control management strategies. Many current rhythm control treatment strategies for AF, including cardioversion and ablation, are used less frequently in women as compared to men, whereas women are more likely to be treated with rate control strategies or antiarrhythmic drugs. Sex differences should be considered in treating women with AF to improve outcomes and women and men should be offered the same interventions for AF. We need to improve the evidence base to understand if variation in utilization of rate and rhythm control management between men and women represents health inequities or appropriate clinical judgement.
DOI: 10.1111/jce.14838
Institutions: Rush University Medical Center, Boston University, University at Buffalo, State University of New York, University of California, San Francisco, University of California San Francisco Medical Center, Washington University in St. Louis, Pennsylvania State University, University of Florida Health, University of Florida, Christ Hospital, University of California, Los Angeles, University Hospitals of Cleveland, University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, Case Western Reserve University, Emory University, Cooper Medical School of Rowan University
Language: English
Subfield: Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W3114803652