Correction of Potentially Modifiable Components of Metabolic Syndrome for the Primary Prevention of Atrial Fibrillation in Comorbid Patients with Premature Atrial Complexes
AIM: The study aimed to evaluate the influence of the correction of potentially modifiable risk factors for the development of atrial fibrillation (AF) as primary prevention of AF in patients with metabolic syndrome (MS) and premature atrial complexes (PAC). MATERIALS AND METHODS: We monitored 856 MS patients with PAC, aged 58-72 (mean age, 66.4 ± 0.7) years, in the north-western region of the Russian Federation. A 5-year risk of AF was calculated in all patients after the examination by determining the potential prognostic time range for Af development and its index of probable occurrence (RCHARGE-AF) using the CHARGE-AF model. The correction of potentially modifiable MS components and risk factors for AF development (smoking cessation, elimination of physical inactivity, etc.) until their target values were achieved was offered to all patients. The follow-up endpoint was the preservation of sinus rhythm or AF registration. RESULTS: All patients with MS were distributed into three groups. Group I consisted of 557 (65.07%) patients with incomplete correction of risk factors, and group II included 93 (10.86%) who achieved the target values of all potentially modifiable factors for AF development. The control group included the remaining patients without quantitative and qualitative changes in the dynamics AF predictors. No significant differences were found between the groups in terms of sex, age, concomitant diseases, and risk factors for AF. The achievement of the target values of the main MS components, including body mass index and/or waist circumference, correlated with the performance of regular aerobic exercises (odds ratio [OR] = 8.9), adherence to a diet (OR = 7.5), duration of MS diagnosis  0.05), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: In MS patients with PAC and a high 5-year risk of AF, the correction of potentially modifiable risk factors for AF development, as its primary prevention, is ineffective. The determination of the RCHARGE-AF index in MS patients with PAC in dynamics indicates the efficiency of the correction of potentially modifiable risk factors for AF development, but it does not determine the degree of the risk of its occurrence. The authors declare no conflict of interest.