title: Demographics, treatment and outcomes of atrial fibrillation in a developing country: the population-based TuRkish Atrial Fibrillation (TRAF) cohort.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Although atrial fibrillation (AF) is increasingly common in developed countries, there is limited information regarding its demographics, co-morbidities, treatments and outcomes in the developing countries. We present the profile of the TuRkish Atrial Fibrillation (TRAF) cohort which provides real-life data about prevalence, incidence, co-morbidities, treatment, healthcare utilization and outcomes associated with AF.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The TRAF cohort was extracted from MEDULA, a health insurance database linking hospitals, general practitioners, pharmacies and outpatient clinics for almost 100% of the inhabitants of the country. The cohort includes 507 136 individuals with AF between 2008 and 2012 aged >18 years who survived the first 30 days following diagnosis. Of 507 136 subjects, there were 423 109 (83.4%) with non-valvular AF and 84 027 (16.6%) with valvular AF. The prevalence was 0.80% in non-valvular AF and 0.28% in valvular AF; in 2012 the incidence of non-valvular AF (0.17%) was higher than valvular AF (0.04%). All-cause mortality was 19.19% (97 368) and 11.47% (58 161) at 1-year after diagnosis of AF. There were 35 707 (7.04%) ischaemic stroke/TIA/thromboembolism at baseline and 34 871 (6.87%) during follow-up; 11 472 (2.26%) major haemorrhages at baseline and 10 183 (2.01%) during follow-up, and 44 116 (8.69%) hospitalizations during the follow-up.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The TRAF cohort is the first population-based, whole-country cohort of AF epidemiology, quality of care and outcomes. It provides a unique opportunity to study the patterns, causes and impact of treatments on the incidence and outcomes of AF in a developing country.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Medical Park Ankara Hospital, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Bünyamin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Yavuz
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, 29 Mayis Hospital, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Naim
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ata
authors.affiliation: MITS (Media and Medical Information Technology Solutions), Bilkent University Cyberpark, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Emre
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Oto
authors.affiliation: MITS (Media and Medical Information Technology Solutions), Bilkent University Cyberpark, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Deniz
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Katircioglu-Öztürk
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Faculty of Medicine, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Kudret
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Aytemir
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Faculty of Medicine, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Banu
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Evranos
authors.affiliation: Social Security Institution Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Rasim
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Koselerli
authors.affiliation: Social Security Institution Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Emre
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ertugay
authors.affiliation: Social Security Institution Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Abdulkadir
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Burkan
authors.affiliation: Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Political Science, Ankara University, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Emrah
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ertugay
authors.affiliation: Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Leeds Institute of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Medicine, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK.
authors.forename: Christ P
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Gale
authors.affiliation: Division of Clinical Sciences, Cardiovascular Sciences Research Centre, St George's, University of London, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: A John
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Camm
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Faculty of Medicine, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Oto
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000889:Anti-Arrhythmia Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage; D000925:Anticoagulants / Q000008:administration & dosage; D001281:Atrial Fibrillation / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D015897:Comorbidity; D003906:Developing Countries / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D005343:Fibrinolytic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians' / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015995:Prevalence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D017678:Sex Distribution; D020521:Stroke / Q000401:mortality* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D015996:Survival Rate; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014421:Turkey / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D000889:Anti-Arrhythmia Agents; D000925:Anticoagulants; D005343:Fibrinolytic Agents
keywords: Atrial fibrillation; CHA2DS2Vasc; Incidence of atrial fibrillation; Population-based cohort