Increased risk of atrial fibrillation among elderly Norwegian men with a history of long‐term endurance sport practice

Abstract

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common cardiac arrhythmia. The prevalence increases with increasing age. In middle-aged men, endurance sport practice is associated with increased risk of AF but there are few studies among elderly people. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of long-term endurance sport practice as a risk factor for AF in elderly men. A cross-sectional study compared 509 men aged 65–90 years who participated in a long-distance cross-country ski race with 1768 men aged 65–87 years from the general population. Long-term endurance sport practice was the main exposure. Self-reported AF and covariates were assessed by questionnaires. Risk differences (RDs) for AF were estimated by using a linear regression model. After multivariable adjustment, a history of endurance sport practice gave an added risk for AF of 6.0 percent points (pp) (95% confidence interval 0.8–11.1). Light and moderate leisure-time physical activity during the last 12 months reduced the risk with 3.7 and 4.3 pp, respectively, but the RDs were not statistically significant. This study suggests that elderly men with a history of long-term endurance sport practice have an increased risk of AF compared with elderly men in the general population.

Differential Association of Exercise Intensity With Risk of Atrial Fibrillation in Men and Women: Evidence from a Meta‐Analysis

“…A total of 22 studies comprising of 656,750 participants were analyzed in this meta‐analysis, which included 12 cohort studies (including 4 prospective cohorts), 5 case‐control, 1 post hoc analysis of randomized controlled study, 1 prospective observational, 1 retrospective, and 2 cross sectional studies. The age of study participants ranged from 50 to 61 years (interquartile range). The study designs and participant characteristics are presented in Table .…”

Aerobic Interval Training Reduces the Burden of Atrial Fibrillation in the Short Term

“…3,7,8 Our results showed that moderate amounts of exercise are beneficial for patients with AF; these results support the growing evidence of an exercise-induced protective effect on AF risk in healthy individuals. Light to moderate amounts of exercise seem to reduce AF risk, 13,15,16 and better cardiorespiratory fitness is shown to have a graded, inverse relationship to AF risk up to a certain point. 28,29 Our study results extend these previous findings by also showing a reduced burden of AF in individuals with manifest disease.…”

“…7,8 Other studies indicate a lower incidence of AF in individuals performing more moderate levels of exercise. 13,15,16 Because of these conflicting findings, many AF patients and their physicians have been uncertain about the benefits and potential negative effects of exercise training and have therefore been reluctant to partake in endurance exercise, particularly at higher intensities. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effect of 12 weeks of aerobic interval training (AIT) on time in AF, AF symptoms, cardiac function, exercise capacity, quality of life (QoL), lipid profile, and the need for healthcare services in patients with paroxysmal or persistent AF.…”

“…7,8 However, the effect that physical activity has on the burden of AF is unclear, and there are no specific recommendations for exercise in the AF guidelines. 9,10 Recent studies have suggested that high levels of physical exercise training increase the risk of AF [11][12][13][14] but have not led to reservations about exercise for AF patients in the guidelines for the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease. 7,8 Other studies indicate a lower incidence of AF in individuals performing more moderate levels of exercise.…”

Effect of Years of Endurance Exercise on Risk of Atrial Fibrillation and Atrial Flutter

“…In contrast, endurance sport participation seems to be an independent risk factor for AF in men aged 65 years. 6 The aim of this study was to assess the dose-response relation between cumulative years of endurance exercise and risk for atrial arrhythmias in men aged 53 years. …”