Impact of chronic anemia on the new-onset atrial fibrillation in the elderly: It may not be what we have thought

Objective: To determine if a clinically significant relation exists between chronic anemia and the new-onset atrial fibrillation (AF) in the elderly population from a community setting. Patients and Methods: This is a single center community-based retrospective cohort study. Data were collected on 3867 patients over the age of 65 years presenting to the Mercy Medical Center in the year 2006. Patients without AF were divided into anemic and non-anemic groups and were followed over the next two years for the new-onset AF. Chronic anemia was defined as hemoglobin level less than 13g/dl in males and less than 12g/dl in females from two laboratory values checked at least 4 months apart. Results: Of the 2873 patients without AF, 2382 (83%) patients were non-anemic. 491 patients were anemic. New-onset AF was found in 7.5% of the anemic patients and 5.5% of the non-anemic patients. After the adjustment for comorbid conditions, chronic anemia is not associated with new-onset AF (p=0.922). Conclusion: In this study cohort of elderly community-based patients, chronic anemia is not associated with the new-onset AF.