The Registry of the German Competence NETwork on Atrial Fibrillation: patient characteristics and initial management

Abstract

The aim of this study was to describe the characteristics of patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) enrolled in the Central Registry of the German Competence NETwork on Atrial Fibrillation (AFNET) and to assess current medical practice in patients treated at various levels of medical care in Germany. Methods From February 2004 to March 2006, 9582 ambulatory and hospitalized patients with ECG-documented AF were and results enrolled by 194 participating study centres from all levels of medical care in Germany. Clinical type of AF was reported as paroxysmal in 2893, persistent in 1873, and permanent in 3134 patients or classified as a first episode in 1035 patients. Predisposing conditions were common and present in 87.6 % of the patients. Most patients were symptomatic with AF (75.1%). Rhythm control in persistent AF was provided to 53.4 % of the symptomati