SynthesisCirculation2017
Genetic Obesity and the Risk of Atrial Fibrillation: Causal Estimates from Mendelian Randomization.
Abstract readMeta-Analysis
In one paragraph
Synthesis in Circulation, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 74 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
0numbers the graph read from it
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74citing papers in PubMed, 5 pooled it
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What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
74 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Cross-population GWAS and proteomics improve risk prediction and reveal mechanisms in atrial fibrillation.Nature communications · 2025Pooled it
- Causal role of high body mass index in multiple chronic diseases: a systematic review and meta-analysis of Mendelian randomization studies.BMC medicine · 2021Pooled it
- Association Between Obesity and Cardiovascular Outcomes: Updated Evidence from Meta-analysis Studies.Current cardiology reports · 2020Pooled it
- Environmental factors, serum biomarkers and risk of atrial fibrillation: an exposure-wide umbrella review of meta-analyses.European journal of epidemiology · 2020Pooled it
- Body mass index, abdominal fatness, fat mass and the risk of atrial fibrillation: a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of prospective studies.European journal of epidemiology · 2017Pooled it
- Left Atrial Remodeling and Functional Maladaptations in Obesity: An Invasive Pressure-Volume Analysis.Circulation. Heart failure · 2026Article
- Increased Arrhythmic Risk in Obesity Is Transduced by Adipose Tissue-Derived Extracellular Vesicles.JACC. Basic to translational science · 2026Article
- Kynurenic acid mediates epicardial fat-induced lymphatic metabolic dysfunction in atrial fibrillation.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Gastroesophageal reflux disease and risk of atrial fibrillation/flutter: Implications for heart failure progression.ESC heart failure · 2025Article
- The m6A Demethylase Fto Enhances Susceptibility to Atrial Fibrillation by Demethylating Kcne1 in Aging Mice.Aging cell · 2025Article
- Brazilian Atrial Fibrillation Guidelines - 2025.Arquivos brasileiros de cardiologia · 2025Article
- Metabolic score for visceral fat and atrial fibrillation risk: a prospective study.BMC endocrine disorders · 2025Article
- Single-Nucleotide Polymorphisms,International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Review
- Pharmacological Cardioversion Versus Electrical Cardioversion in the Acute Treatment of Atrial Fibrillation in the Emergency Department: The Recufa-Hula Register.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Obesity and heart failure: exploring the cardiometabolic axis.Cardiovascular research · 2025Review
- Diabetes and atrial fibrillation: Causality is still a black-box.International journal of cardiology. Heart & vasculature · 2025Article
- Causal relationship between type I diabetes mellitus and atrial fibrillation: A Mendelian randomization study.International journal of cardiology. Heart & vasculature · 2025Article
- 2025 Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics: A Report of US and Global Data From the American Heart Association.Circulation · 2025Review
- Cryoballoon Pulmonary Vein Isolation in Obese Patients with Atrial Fibrillation Compared to Non-Obese Counterparts: A Meta-Analysis.Biomedicines · 2025Review
- Upstream targeting for the prevention of atrial fibrillation: Targeting Risk Interventions and Metformin for Atrial Fibrillation (TRIM-AF)-rationale and study design.Journal of interventional cardiac electrophysiology : an international journal of arrhythmias and pacing · 2025Article
14 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
23 authors.
Neal A ChatterjeeDivision of Preventive Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
Franco Giulianini *Division of Preventive Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
Bastiaan Geelhoed *Department of Cardiology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands.
Kathryn L Lunetta *The Framingham Heart Study, Framingham, MA, USA; Cardiology and Preventive Medicine Sections, Boston University School of Medicine, Epidemiology Department, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA.
Jeffrey R Misialek *Division of Epidemiology and Community Health, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
Maartje N Niemeijer *Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus Medical Center-University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Michiel Rienstra *Department of Cardiology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands.
Lynda M Rose *Division of Preventive Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
Albert V Smith *Icelandic Heart Association, Research Institute, Kpoavogur, Iceland and University of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland.
Dan E ArkingMcKusick-Nathans Institute of Genetic Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
Patrick T EllinorCardiovascular Research Center and Cardiac Arrhythmia Service, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA and Program in Medical and Population Genetics, The Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA.
Jan HeeringaDepartment of Epidemiology, Erasmus Medical Center-University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Honghuang LinThe Framingham Heart Study, Framingham, MA, USA; Cardiology and Preventive Medicine Sections, Boston University School of Medicine, Epidemiology Department, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA.
Steven A LubitzCardiovascular Research Center and Cardiac Arrhythmia Service, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA and Program in Medical and Population Genetics, The Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA.
Elsayed Z SolimanEpidemiological Cardiology Research Center (EPICARE), Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston Salem, NC, USA.
Niek VerweijDepartment of Cardiology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands.
Alvaro AlonsoDepartment of Epidemiology, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA.
Emelia J BenjaminThe Framingham Heart Study, Framingham, MA, USA; Cardiology and Preventive Medicine Sections, Boston University School of Medicine, Epidemiology Department, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA.
Vilmundur GudnasonIcelandic Heart Association, Research Institute, Kpoavogur, Iceland and University of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland.
Bruno H C StrickerDepartment of Epidemiology, Erasmus Medical Center-University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Pim Van Der HarstDepartment of Cardiology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands.
Daniel I ChasmanDivision of Preventive Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
Christine M AlbertDivision of Preventive Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
Funding
Institute for Clinical and Translational Research (UL1)UL1RR025005 · NCRR · JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY · PI FORD, DANIEL ERNEST · 2007 to 2011
$75.8MWomen's Health Study: Continued Follow-upR01CA047988 · NCI · BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL · PI BURING, JULIE E., LEE, I-MIN · 1991 to 2014
$28.2MGenome-Wide Association Analysis in Essential Hypertension (FEHGAS study)R01HL086694 · NHLBI · NEW YORK UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE · PI ARAVINDA CHAKRAVARTI · 2007 to 2026
$21.2MIDENTIFICATION OF COMMON GENETIC VARIANTS FOR ATRIAL FIBRILLATION AND PR INTERVALR01HL092577 · NHLBI · MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL · PI BENJAMIN, EMELIA J., ELLINOR, PATRICK THOMAS · 2009 to 2025
$20.6MEpidemiology of Venous Thrombosis & Pulmonary EmbolismR01HL059367 · NHLBI · UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA TWIN CITIES · PI TANG, WEIHONG · 1998 to 2024
$11.8MTraining Program in the Epidemiology of CVDT32HL007575 · NHLBI · HARVARD UNIVERSITY (MEDICAL SCHOOL) · PI BURING, JULIE E., RIDKER, PAUL M. · 1985 to 2019
$5.0MWomen's Health Study: Continued Follow-UpR01HL080467 · NHLBI · BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL · PI BURING, JULIE E. · 2005 to 2010
$4.5MThe Women's Health Study: Infrastructure Support for Continued Cohort Follow-upUM1CA182913 · NCI · BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL · PI BURING, JULIE E., LEE, I-MIN · 2014 to 2018
$4.0MGenome-Wide Association for Loci Influencing CHD and Other Heart, Lung and BloodR01HL087641 · NHLBI · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HLTH SCI CTR HOUSTON · PI BOERWINKLE, ERIC A. · 2006 to 2008
$3.7MThe VITAL Rhythm StudyR01HL116690 · NHLBI · BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL · PI ALBERT, CHRISTINE M · 2013 to 2020
$3.5MAFGen Consortium: Atrial Fibrillation Genomics to Functional AnalysesR01HL128914 · NHLBI · BOSTON UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CAMPUS · PI BENJAMIN, EMELIA J., ELLINOR, PATRICK THOMAS · 2015 to 2018
$3.1MGWA for Gene-Environment Interaction Effects Influencing CHDU01HG004402 · NHGRI · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HLTH SCI CTR HOUSTON · PI BOERWINKLE, ERIC A. · 2007 to 2009
$1.6MAmerican Heart Association-American Stroke Association 16EIA26410001Doris Duke Charitable Foundation 2014105NCI NIH HHS R01 CA047988NCI NIH HHS UM1 CA182913NCRR NIH HHS UL1 RR025005NHGRI NIH HHS U01 HG004402NHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201100005CNHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201100005GNHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201100005INHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201100006CNHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201100007CNHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201100007INHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201100008CNHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201100008INHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201100009CNHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201100009INHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201100010CNHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201100011CNHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201100011INHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201100012CNHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201500001CNHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201500001INHLBI NIH HHS K23 HL114724NHLBI NIH HHS K24 HL105780NHLBI NIH HHS N01 HC025195NHLBI NIH HHS R01 HL043851NHLBI NIH HHS R01 HL059367NHLBI NIH HHS R01 HL080467NHLBI NIH HHS R01 HL086694NHLBI NIH HHS R01 HL087641NHLBI NIH HHS R01 HL092577NHLBI NIH HHS R01 HL102214NHLBI NIH HHS R01 HL116690NHLBI NIH HHS R01 HL128914NHLBI NIH HHS R21 HL093613NHLBI NIH HHS RC1 HL099355NHLBI NIH HHS RC1 HL101056NHLBI NIH HHS T32 HL007575NIA NIH HHS HHSN271201200022CNIA NIH HHS N01 AG012100
Abstract
backgroundObservational studies have identified an association between body mass index (BMI) and incident atrial fibrillation (AF). Inferring causality from observational studies, however, is subject to residual confounding, reverse causation, and bias. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the causal association between BMI and AF by using genetic predictors of BMI.
methodsWe identified 51 646 individuals of European ancestry without AF at baseline from 7 prospective population-based cohorts initiated between 1987 and 2002 in the United States, Iceland, and the Netherlands with incident AF ascertained between 1987 and 2012. Cohort-specific mean follow-up ranged from 7.4 to 19.2 years, over which period there was a total of 4178 cases of incident AF. We performed a Mendelian randomization with instrumental variable analysis to estimate a cohort-specific causal hazard ratio for the association between BMI and AF. Two genetic instruments for BMI were used:
resultsIn age- and sex-adjusted meta-analysis, both genetic instruments were significantly associated with BMI (
conclusionsOur data are consistent with a causal relationship between BMI and incident AF. These data support the possibility that public health initiatives targeting primordial prevention of obesity may reduce the incidence of AF.
Indexed as
AgedAllelesAlpha-Ketoglutarate-Dependent Dioxygenase FTOAtrial FibrillationBody Mass IndexCohort StudiesFemaleGenotypeHumansIncidenceMaleMiddle AgedObesityPolymorphism, Single NucleotideProportional Hazards ModelsProspective StudiesAlpha-Ketoglutarate-Dependent Dioxygenase FTOFTO protein, humanatrial fibrillationepidemiologygeneticsobesityprevention & control
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