Background:
Postoperative atrial fibrillation (PoAF) after cardiac surgery is
common and associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Increased
sympathetic activation after surgery contributes to PoAF, and beta-blockers
are the first-line recommendation for its prevention. We examined the
hypothesis that common functional genetic variants in the
β1-adrenoreceptor, the mediator of cardiac sympathetic
activation and drug target of beta-blockers, are associated with the risk
for PoAF and with the protective effect of beta-blockers.
Methods:
In a prospective cohort study, we studied 947 adult European
Americans who underwent cardiac surgery at Vanderbilt University between
1999-2005. We genotyped two variants in the
β1-adrenoreceptor, rs1801253 (Arg389Gly) and rs1801252
(Ser49Gly), and used logistic regression to examine the association between
genotypes and PoAF occurring within 14 days after surgery, before and after
adjustment for demographic and clinical covariates.
Results:
PoAF occurred in 239 patients (25.2%) and was associated with
rs1801253 genotype (adjusted P=0.008), with Gly389Gly having an odds ratio
of 2.63 (95% confidence interval, 1.42 to 4.89) for PoAF compared to the
common Arg389Arg (P=0.002). In a predefined subgroup analysis, this
association appeared to be stronger among patients without beta-blocker
prophylaxis (adjusted OR=7.00; 95% CI, 1.82 to 26.96; P=0.005) compared to
patients with beta-blocker prophylaxis, among whom the association between
rs1801253 genotype and PoAF was not statistically significant (adjusted
P=0.11).
Conclusion:
The Gly389 variant in the β1-adrenoreceptor is
associated with PoAF, and this association appears to be modulated by
beta-blocker therapy. Future studies of the association of other adrenergic
pathway genes with PoAF will be of interest.