Racial and Urban-Rural Difference in the Frequency of Ischemic Stroke as Initial Manifestation of Atrial Fibrillation.

ABSTRACT: Objective: Atrial fibrillation (AF) may remain undiagnosed until the development of complications. We aimed to examine the epidemiology and racial/ethnic and rural/urban differences in the frequency of newly diagnosed AF manifesting as ischemic stroke in a nationally representative sample of Medicare beneficiaries. Methods: We used a 5% random sample of Medicare claims to identify patients newly diagnosed with AF in 2016. The primary dependent variable was stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA) in the 7 days prior to the first AF diagnosis, i.e., stroke or TIA as the initial manifestation of AF. We constructed a multivariable logistic regression to quantify the association between race/ethnicity, urban/rural residence, and the primary dependent variable. Results:

SUBMITTER: Guo J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8602106 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature