Prevalence, Risk Factors and Pharmacological Treatment of Atrial Fibrillation in Older Hospitalized Patients in Vietnam

Background. The evidence about prevalence of atrial fibrillation (AF) in Vietnam is very limited. This study aims to investigate the prevalence of AF, its associated factors and pharmacological treatment in older patients in Vietnam.The secondary aim is to investigate the impact of frailty on the pharmacological treatment of AF. Methods. We used data from a study of the prevalence of frailty in older hospitalised patients at the National Geriatric Hospital in Hanoi, Vietnam. Consecutive patients aged ≥60 years were recruited from 4/2015 to 10/2015. Results. A total of 461 patients was recruited (56.8% female, mean age 76.2±8.9). The prevalence of AF was 3.9% (18 patients). Amongst patients with AF, the most common medical conditions were hypertension (72.2%), followed by stroke (55.6%), heart failure (50.0%), type2 diabetes (44.4%). Living alone (OR=10.2, 95%CI 1.5–70.1), having a habit of using vitamins at home (OR=3.8, 95%CI 1.1–13.4), having heart failure (OR=31.3, 95%CI 9.6–101.8), and having type 2 diabetes (OR=3.5, 95%CI 1.2–10.7) were associated with the presence of AF on admission. All patients with AF had a high risk of stroke (CHA2DS2-VASc score≥2) and 72.2% of them had a high risk of bleeding with anticoagulant medications (HAS-BLED score≥3). Only 22.2% were anticoagulated on admission and 22.2% upon discharge, with no difference between frail and non-frail patients. Conclusions. The prevalence of AF among older hospitalised patients in Vietnam is similar to that reported in other countries. Anticoagulation for stroke prevention was underused, without any significant difference between frail and non-frail patients.