| Abstract [eng] |
Atrial fibrillation is the most common and most frequently encountered long-term cardiac arrhythmia in clinical practice. The scientific literature lacks information on the role of arterial blood pressure variations in the development of atrial fibrillation and related atrial arrhythmia episodes. In order to investigate this relationship, the present study was conducted. This prospective observational cohort study was performed with 68 subjects who were monitored on an outpatient basis for one week with periodic arterial blood pressure measurements and continuous single-lead electrocardiogram recording. Subjects with recorded atrial arrhythmias had greater arterial blood pressure variability. In a more detailed analysis subjects were found to have lower systolic arterial blood pressure before the onset of atrial arrhythmias. However, individual analyses revealed that changes in arterial blood pressure associated with the onset of atrial arrhythmias were diverse – some subjects experienced a significant decrease in arterial blood pressure, others an increase, and some subjects were seemingly unaffected by arterial blood pressure fluctuations. An additional review revealed that increasing arterial blood pressure before the onset of atrial arrhythmias may be characteristic for patients with diagnosed arterial hypertension, especially those with consequential changes visible in echocardiographic findings. In summary, changes in arterial blood pressure are associated with atrial arrhythmias. Additionally, it is hypothesised that some atrial arrhythmias may have been provoked by an autonomic imbalance, and changes in arterial blood pressure observed were a secondary phenomenon. It is likely that atrial arrhythmias may also be provoked by other unmentioned mechanisms, thus an individualised approach to each patient is essential. |
