Atrial fibrillation prevalence and risk profile from novel community-based screening in Thailand: A prospective multi-centre study

摘要

BackgroundIn Thailand, almost one-quarter of strokes are related to atrial fibrillation (AF), and many could be prevented if AF were diagnosed and treated prior to the stroke. Therefore, we tested a novel strategy to screen large numbers of community residents using village health volunteers and primary care nurses.MethodsLocal primary care nurses and village health volunteers in Phetchaburi and Lopburi provinces, Thailand were trained to perform AF screening using a blood pressure device with AF algorithm (Microlife A200 AFib). 10% of residents aged?≥?65?years were randomly selected for screening during home-visits. Participants with possible AF were given follow-up appointments for further testing, including 12-lead ECG and echocardiogram.ResultsOver two-months, 9.7% (13,864/143,478) of the target population were screened: mean age 73.2?±?6.4?years, 32.4% male. The estimated AF prevalence (detected by Microlife A200 AFib) was 2.8% (95% CI, 2.6–3.1%) for age?≥?65?years (i.e. 393/13,864 participants). Prevalence increased with age from 1.9% (65–69?years) to 5.0% (≥85?years) (p?