Causes of death in patients with atrial fibrillation in the UK: a nationwide electronic health record study

Aims. Causes of death remain largely unexplored in the atrial fibrillation (AF) population. We aimed to (i) thoroughly assess causes of death in patients with AF, especially those associated with sudden cardiac death (SCD) and (ii) evaluate the potential association between AF and SCD. Methods and results. Linked primary and secondary care United Kingdom Clinical Practice Research Datalink dataset comprising 6 529 382 individuals aged ≥18. We identified 214 222 patients with newly diagnosed AF, and an equivalent number of non-AF patients matched for age, sex and primary care practice. The underlying primary cause of death for each patient was assessed in the form of International Classification of Diseases Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes and also as part of broader disease categories (i.e. ICD-10 chapters). Findings. Over a median follow-up of 2.7 (interquartile range: 0.7–6.0) years, 124 781 (58.25%) patients with AF died. Sudden cardiac death occurred in 13 923 patients with AF [6.50% patients with AF vs. 2.01% non-AF patients; odds ratio (OR) = 3.38, 95% confidence interval (CI): 3.27–3.50, P < 0.0001], contributing to 11.05% of all AF mortality. Diseases of the circulatory system, neoplasms and respiratory diseases explained 45% of AF mortality. Sudden cardiac death occurred more frequently in males (OR = 1.87, 95% CI: 1.80–1.93, P < 0.0001), and females with AF died more often of diseases of the circulatory, respiratory, digestive, and genitourinary system and less often of neoplastic disorders. Interpretation. Conditions of the circulatory system are the main driver of mortality in the AF population. Females with AF experience higher cardiovascular and respiratory mortality but die less frequently of neoplasms. The risk of SCD is higher in the AF population, occurring more frequently in males.