Association Between the Frailty and New-Onset Atrial Fibrillation/Flutter Among Elderly Hypertensive Patients.

Background: Frailty was found to be common in patients with atrial fibrillation/flutter (AF), but there was still a lack of evidence regarding the relationship between frailty and new-onset AF. Methods: We performed a Results: In total, 7,316 participants were included in our analysis, and a total of 115 new-onset AF occurred during an average of 3.54 years of follow-up. Using SPRINT frailty index criteria, 1,535 fit, 4,041 less fit, and 1,740 frailty were enrolled. Compared with other groups, the incidence of new-onset AF in the frailty group was significantly higher. We constructed three Cox models to assess the relationship between the frailty status (fit group as reference) and new-onset AF. Participants with frailty had a significantly higher risk of new-onset AF compared with the fit group in all the models we used. We combined the fit group and the less fit group into a no frailty group to assess the impact of frailty on new-onset AF in various subgroups. After full adjustment (Model 3), frailty remained associated with the increased risk of new-onset AF compared with the no frailty group [hazard ratio [ Conclusion: This study found baseline frailty status was a strong independent risk factor for new-onset AF among older adult patients with hypertension. Screening for frailty should be considered in older adult patients with hypertension to prevent new-onset AF.