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Stroke risk in an elderly population with atrial fibrillation

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Abstract

Patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (AF) have an increased risk of stroke, but the absolute rate of stroke varies widely depending on coexistent vascular disease. We assessed the stroke rate and predictive value of two published schemes for stroke risk stratification in a population-derived cohort of 259 elderly people with nonvalvular AF followed for a median of 5.3 years. The rate of ischemic stroke was 2.8% per year (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.9, 3.9). Thirty-one percent were predicted to be at low risk, and their stroke rate was 1.7% per year (95% CI 0.6, 3.8). Many people with AF in this population-derived cohort had relatively low rates of stroke. Further studies to reliably stratify stroke risk in patients with AF are needed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Received from the Department of Neurology, University of Arizona Health Sciences Center, Tucson, Ariz

    William M. Feinberg MD

  2. Department of Biostatistics, University of Washington, Seattle, Wash

    Richard A. Kronmal PhD

  3. Department of Medicine, Division of Geriatric Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa

    Anne B. Newman MD, MPH

  4. Department of Radiology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Md

    Michael A. Kraut MD, PhD

  5. Department of Pathology, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vt

    Edwin G. Bovill MD

  6. National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Md

    Lawton Cooper MD

  7. Department of Medicine, Neurology Division, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, Tex

    Robert G. Hart MD

Authors
  1. William M. Feinberg MD
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  2. Richard A. Kronmal PhD
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  3. Anne B. Newman MD, MPH
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  4. Michael A. Kraut MD, PhD
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  5. Edwin G. Bovill MD
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  6. Lawton Cooper MD
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  7. Robert G. Hart MD
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Additional information

Deceased.

This work was funded by grants from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health.

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Feinberg, W.M., Kronmal, R.A., Newman, A.B. et al. Stroke risk in an elderly population with atrial fibrillation. J GEN INTERN MED 14, 56–59 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1525-1497.1999.00281.x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1525-1497.1999.00281.x

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