ReviewJournal of atrial fibrillation
The Association Between Atrial Fibrillation and Endurance Physical Activity: How Much is too Much?
Review in Journal of atrial fibrillation. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 16 citations in OpenAlex.
- Sex-Specific Differences in Cardiovascular Adaptations and Risks in Elite Athletes: Bridging the Gap in Sports Cardiology.Clinical cardiology · 2024Pooled it
- The Moderating Effect of Physical Activity Between IQOS Smoking and Ventricular Repolarization Parameters in Lebanese University Students.Health science reports · 2026Article
- Atrial Fibrillation in Athletes: Mechanisms, Management, and Future Directions.JACC. Case reports · 2026Article
- Effect of sarcopenia on risk of atrial fibrillation: a systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies.Frontiers in cardiovascular medicine · 2026Review
- Navigating atrial fibrillation in an endurance athlete: Evaluation, risk stratification, lifestyle modifications, and therapeutic considerations.HeartRhythm case reports · 2025Article
- Brazilian Atrial Fibrillation Guidelines - 2025.Arquivos brasileiros de cardiologia · 2025Article
- Article
- Review
- Atrial Fibrillation in Endurance Training Athletes: Scoping Review.Reviews in cardiovascular medicine · 2023Article
- Long-Term Sports Practice and Atrial Fibrillation: An Updated Review of a Complex Relationship.Journal of cardiovascular development and disease · 2023Review
- Could Repeated Cardio-Renal Injury Trigger Late Cardiovascular Sequelae in Extreme Endurance Athletes?Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2022Review
- Leisure-time physical activities and the risk of cardiovascular mortality in the Malmö diet and Cancer study.BMC public health · 2021Article
- Myocardial Injury and Overload among Amateur Marathoners as Indicated by Changes in Concentrations of Cardiovascular Biomarkers.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common arrhythmia in middle-aged athletes. Physical exercise performed in a regular basis has been shown to be beneficial for cardiovascular health. Moderate physical exercise, aside from producing a nice, peaceful and well-being sensation, has been associated with a reduced risk of AF. However, more strenuous endurance exercise, like the one experiencing marathon runners, seems to increase the risk of AF in healthy athletes without organic heart disease. On the other hand, low physical activity was found to be a risk factor for the appearance of AF. Nevertheless, the relationship of exercise to AF is complex, influenced by the intensity and the duration of the physical activity, and seems to have a U-shaped relationship with the greatest levels of physical activity possibly increasing AF incidence. There is cumulative data associating moderate physical activity to reduced AF incidence, hence physicians should recommend moderate exercise training to patients with AF. This may not only reduce AF risk, but would also contribute to an overall cardiovascular benefit. However, since there is also important data suggesting significant increased incidence of AF in elite athletes with long-term endurance physical activity, it may be a serious concern to go to the extreme. In most things in life it is much better and wiser to be well balanced, always in equilibrium.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.