The Disease Burden of Atrial Fibrillation in China from a National Cross-sectional Survey

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common type of arrhythmia, which is a significant public health issue. We aimed to determine the disease burden of AF in China. We used a recent national survey with stratified multistage random sampling from general Chinese population to estimate the AF disease burden, which enrolled 34,994 people aged 35 years or older all over China. The AF patients were detected by electrocardiogram during the survey or medical history taking. The quality of life in AF patients was assessed by a questionnaire similar to EQ-5D to estimate the weight of disability. Disability-adjusted life years was then calculated by adding years of life lost to years lived with disability. Overall, 31,230 samples were included in the final analysis, the weighted prevalence of AF in the Chinese population aged 35 years or older was 0.71%. Thirty-four percent of AF patients were newly diagnosed in the survey and unaware of their pathological condition beforehand. The prevalence of AF significantly increased with age. The health-related quality of life was impaired in Chinese AF patients with an overall utility value of 0.53. The total disability-adjusted life years of Chinese AF patient is estimated to be 665,400. In conclusion, the disease burden of AF in the general Chinese population was a significant public health issue in China.