Who Is At Risk for Atrial Fibrillation?

More than 2 million people in the United States have atrial fibrillation (AF). It affects both men and women.

The risk of AF increases as you age. This is mostly because as you get older, your risk for heart disease and other conditions that can cause AF also increases. However, about half of the people who have AF are younger than 75.

AF is uncommon in children.

Major Risk Factors

AF is more common in people who have heart diseases or conditions, such as:

• Coronary heart disease
• Heart failure
• Rheumatic heart disease
• Structural heart defects, such as mitral valve disorders
• Pericarditis (a condition in which the membrane, or sac, around your heart is inflamed)
• Congenital heart defects
• Sick sinus syndrome (a condition in which the heart's electrical signals don't fire properly and the heart rate slows down; sometimes the heart will switch back and forth between a slow rate and a fast rate)

AF also is more common in people who are having heart attacks or who have just had surgery.

Other Risk Factors

Other conditions that increase AF risk include hyperthyroidism (too much thyroid hormone), obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, and lung disease.

Other factors also can increase your risk of AF. For example, drinking large amounts of alcohol, especially binge drinking, increases your risk. Even modest amounts of alcohol can trigger AF in some people. Caffeine or psychological stress also may trigger AF in some people.

Some evidence suggests that people who have sleep apnea are at greater risk for AF. Sleep apnea is a common disorder in which you have one or more pauses in breathing or shallow breaths while you sleep.

Metabolic syndrome also increases your risk of AF. People who have this condition have a group of risk factors that increase their risk of heart disease and other health problems.

Recent research suggests that people who receive high-dose steroid therapy are at increased risk of AF. This therapy, which is commonly used for asthma and certain inflammatory conditions, may act as a trigger in people who already have other AF risk factors.