Burden of Atrial Fibrillation and Atrial Flutter From 1990 to 2021 in China: Global Burden of Disease Study 2021 Update

ABSTRACT Background Atrial fibrillation (AF) and atrial flutter (AFL) represent increasingly significant health burden globally. We aimed to systematically evaluate the status and trends of AF/AFL burden and attributable risk factors in China. Methods We assessed the burden of AF/AFL measured as prevalence, incidence, mortality, and disability‐adjusted life years (DALYs), by sex and age groups in China based on the Global Burden of Diseases Study (GBD) 2021 project. Results In China, there were 10,775.72 thousand AF/AFL prevalent cases, 916.18 thousand AF/AFL incident cases, and 64.73 thousand AF/AFL mortality cases, contributing to 1653.12 thousand DALYs due to AF/AFL in 2021. Trend analysis indicated that the AAPC of number and crude rates of prevalence, incidence, mortality, and DALYs all escalated from 1990 to 2021. The current AF/AFL burden and temporal trend between 1990 and 2021 displayed heterogeneity based on sex and age groups. The spectrum for risk factors attributed for DALYs due to AF/AFL presented sex‐ and age‐specific manifestation. High systolic blood pressure served as the emerging leading contributor to DALYs due to AF/AFL in China. Conclusion A significant increase in the burden of AF/AFL underscores the enduring public health burden of AF/AFL in China, marked by profound sex and age‐related variations. There is a pressing imperative to adopt tailored strategies to attenuate increasing burden of AF/AFL and combat alongside high complication burden due to AF/AFL in China.