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Atrial Fibrillation and Hypertension: Two Entities That Usually Coexist

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Book cover Disorders of Blood Pressure Regulation

Part of the book series: Updates in Hypertension and Cardiovascular Protection ((UHCP))

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Abstract

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common sustained arrhythmia, and its prevalence is 1–2% of the general population worldwide. It is expected that its incidence will increase up to 2.5-fold over the next 50 years. There are many risk factors responsible for the development of AF, but hypertension is the most common factor encountered in clinical practice. Hypertension is associated with 1.8-fold increased risk of developing new-onset AF and 1.5-fold risk of progression to permanent AF, while it is likely to be also a reversible causative factor of AF. Untreated or suboptimal treated hypertension which leads to left ventricular hypertrophy on the one hand and atrial remodeling on the other may facilitate the initiation and perpetuation of AF. Many studies have investigated the role of the antihypertensive drug classes either in primary or in secondary prevention of AF, with various results. In this chapter, an assessment of the strong relationship of arterial hypertension with AF, of the pathophysiological mechanisms linking those two diseases, as well as of the effects of various antihypertensive drug classes on AF is undertaken.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Cardiology, Asklepeion General Hospital, Athens, Greece

    S. Giannitsi, M. S. Kallistratos, L. E. Poulimenos & A. J. Manolis

Authors
  1. S. Giannitsi
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  2. M. S. Kallistratos
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  3. L. E. Poulimenos
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  4. A. J. Manolis
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to A. J. Manolis .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Internal Medicine, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Beirut, Lebanon

    Adel E. Berbari

  2. Emeritus Professor of Medicine, University of Milano-Bicocca, Monza, Italy

    Giuseppe Mancia

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Giannitsi, S., Kallistratos, M.S., Poulimenos, L.E., Manolis, A.J. (2018). Atrial Fibrillation and Hypertension: Two Entities That Usually Coexist. In: Berbari, A., Mancia, G. (eds) Disorders of Blood Pressure Regulation. Updates in Hypertension and Cardiovascular Protection. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-59918-2_17

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-59918-2_17

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-59917-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-59918-2

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

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