A systematic evaluation of the available evidence suggests similarities as well as important differences in the risk factors for incidence of AF as compared with other cardiovascular diseases , which has implication s for the primary prevention strategies for atrial fibrillation
Established primary prevention strategies of cardiovascular diseases are based on underst and ing of risk factors , but whether the same risk factors are associated with  atrial fibrillation ( AF )  remains unclear .
Influence of Systolic and Diastolic Blood Pressure on the Risk of Incident Atrial Fibrillation in Women
Background — The influence of systolic and diastolic blood pressure ( BP ) on  incident atrial fibrillation ( AF )  is not well studied among initially healthy , middle-aged women . Methods and Results — A total of 34 221 women participating in the Women 's Health Study were prospect ively followed up for incident AF . The risk of AF across categories of systolic and diastolic BP was compared by use of Cox proportional-hazards models . During 12.4 years of follow-up , 644 incident AF events occurred . Using  BP measurements at baseline , we discovered that the long-term risk of AF was significantly increased across categories of systolic and diastolic BP . Multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios for systolic BP categories ( < 120 , 120 to 129 , 130 to 139 , 140 to 159 , and ≥160 mm Hg ) were 1.0 , 1.00 ( 95 % CI , 0.78 to 1.28 ) , 1.28 ( 95 % CI , 1.00 to 1.63 ) , 1.56 ( 95 % CI , 1.22 to 2.01 ) , and 2.74 ( 95 % CI , 1.77 to 4.22 ) ( P for trend < 0.0001 ) . Adjusted hazard ratios across baseline diastolic BP categories ( < 65 , 65 to 74 , 75 to 84 , 85 to 89 , 90 to 94 , and ≥95 mm Hg ) were 1.0 , 1.17 ( 95 % CI , 0.81 to 1.69 ) , 1.18 ( 95 % CI , 0.84 to 1.65 ) , 1.53 ( 95 % CI , 1.05 to 2.23 ) , 1.35 ( 95 % CI , 0.82 to 2.22 ) , and 2.15 ( 95 % CI , 1.21 to 3.84 ) ( P for trend=0.004 ) . When BP changes over time were accounted for in up date d models , multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios were 1.0 , 1.14 ( 95 % CI , 0.89 to 1.46 ) , 1.37 ( 95 % CI , 1.07 to 1.76 ) , 1.71 ( 95 % CI , 1.33 to 2.21 ) , and 2.21 ( 95 % CI , 1.45 to 3.36 ) ( P for trend < 0.0001 ) for systolic BP categories and 1.0 , 1.12 ( 95 % CI , 0.82 to 1.52 ) , 1.13 ( 95 % CI , 0.83 to 1.52 ) , 1.30 ( 95 % CI , 0.89 to 1.88 ) , 1.50 ( 95 % CI , 1.01 to 1.88 ) , and 1.54 ( 95 % CI , 0.75 to 3.14 ) ( P for trend=0.026 ) for diastolic BP categories . Conclusions — In this large cohort of initially healthy women , BP was strongly associated with incident AF , and systolic BP was a better predictor than diastolic BP . Systolic BP levels within the nonhypertensive range were independently associated with incident AF even after BP changes over time were taken into account
A systematic evaluation of the available evidence suggests similarities as well as important differences in the risk factors for incidence of AF as compared with other cardiovascular diseases , which has implication s for the primary prevention strategies for atrial fibrillation
Established primary prevention strategies of cardiovascular diseases are based on underst and ing of risk factors , but whether the same risk factors are associated with  atrial fibrillation ( AF )  remains unclear .