Screening for atrial fibrillation (AF) offers a small net benefit in an older population, according to a study published in The Lancet, to coincide with the virtual European Society of Cardiology Congress 2021. Researchers conducted a multicenter, randomized, controlled trial involving patients aged 75 to 76. Participants were randomly assigned to be invited to screening for Afib or to a control group (14,387 and 14,381, respectively). They were asked to register for intermittent ECGs for 14 days; if Afib was detected or untreated, treatment with oral anticoagulants was offered. Of those invited to screening, 7,165 (51.3%) of 13,979 participated. The study team found that significantly fewer primary end point events (ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke, systemic embolism, bleeding leading to hospitalization, or all-cause death) occurred in the intervention group versus the control group after a median follow-up of 6.9 years (5.45 vs 5.68 events per 100 years; HR, 0.96; 95% CI, 0.92-1.00). “Screening for Afib in an older population showed a significant benefit by reducing hard clinical outcomes,” the study authors wrote.
