title: Relation between achieved heart rate and outcomes in patients with atrial fibrillation (from the Atrial Fibrillation Follow-up Investigation of Rhythm Management [AFFIRM] Study).
abstract: Many patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) are treated with rate control and anticoagulation. However, the relation between the degree of heart rate (HR) control and clinical outcome is uncertain. We assessed whether lower achieved HR at rest and/or lower achieved exercise HR was associated with improved prognosis, quality of life (QoL), and functional status among patients in the AFFIRM study. Patients in the rate control arm and who were in AF at baseline and 2 months were included. Patients were grouped by quartile of achieved HR at rest (44 to 69, 70 to 78, 79 to 87, 88 to 148 beats/min) and achieved exercise HR following a 6-minute walk (53 to 82, 83 to 92, 93 to 106, 107 to 220 beats/min). QoL measurements and functional status were also analyzed. Complete data were available for 680 patients for achieved HR at rest, 349 patients for achieved exercise HR, and 118 patients for QoL. Survival free from cardiac hospitalization and overall survival were not significantly different among quartiles of achieved HR at rest (p = 0.19 and p = 0.8, respectively) or achieved exercise HR (p = 0.77 and p = 0.14, respectively). After controlling for covariates, there remained no significant relation between either achieved HR at rest or achieved exercise HR and event-free survival (hazard ratio 0.95, p = 0.35 and hazard ratio 0.98, p = 0.81) or overall survival (hazard ratio 1.03, p = 0.70 and hazard ratio 1.22, p = 0.13). Furthermore, there was no significant association between achieved HR and QoL measurements, New York Heart Association functional class, or 6-minute walking distance. After 2 months of drug titration, neither achieved HR at rest nor achieved exercise HR predicted survival free from cardiovascular hospitalization, overall survival, QoL, or functional status among patients with AF.
authors.affiliation: Division of Cardiology, Washington Hospital Center, 100 Irving Street NW, Suite NA 1103, Washington, DC 20010, USA. howard.a.cooper@medstar.net
authors.forename: Howard A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Cooper
authors.forename: Dennis A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Bloomfield
authors.forename: David E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Bush
authors.forename: Michael S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Katcher
authors.forename: Michele
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rawlins
authors.forename: Joseph D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Sacco
authors.forename: Mary
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chandler
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000889:Anti-Arrhythmia Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D000925:Anticoagulants / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D001281:Atrial Fibrillation / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality* / Q000503:physiopathology; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011788:Quality of Life; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D012146:Rest; D016019:Survival Analysis; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014481:United States
chemical_list: D000889:Anti-Arrhythmia Agents; D000925:Anticoagulants