The most common rhythm in an office setting is the irregular rhythm called atrial fibrillation. The American Heart Association in their 2015 Annual Scientific Session discussed that substantial weight reduction can reduce the incidence and risk of atrial fibrillation.
We know that weight loss can reduce symptoms of atrial fibrillation. This makes sense as weight loss can reduce many other symptoms. This session was talking about long term outcomes of sustained weight loss, and the impact of weight loss over time.
It was found that sustained weight loss achievable in obese individuals can reduce the burden of atrial fibrillation. This is excellent news. It was a moderate sized population of 353 who were obese by definition. The study had excellent results. In addition weight loss was also associated with beneficial structural changes in the heart and improved other cardiac risk factors and markers.
Until tomorrow...