Original Article

The Association of Perceived Stress and Atrial Fibrillation

Abstract

Background and objectives: Atrial Fibrillation (AF) is the most prevalent persistent arrhythmia with a great burden on people’s health and society. Due to associations between psychological factors and AF in previous studies, this study was conducted to investigate the association between perceived stress and arrhythmia.

Methods: In this case-control study, participants were recruited from the outpatient clinic of Rajaie Cardiovascular, Medical and Research Center in Tehran, Iran, between May 2021 and September 2021 based on eligible criteria. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews by trained research nurses using the appropriate checklists. The stress level of participants was evaluated using the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). Data were analyzed by Chi-square, independent T-test, and logistic regression model in SPSS 16.

Results: One hundred fifty-five cases with arrhythmia and 144 controls were recruited for this study. The mean score of the perceived stress was 30.6 in cases and 25.07 in controls (P< 0.001). Stress-related symptoms including palpitation and chest discomfort were more common in patients with arrhythmia than healthy controls (P = 0.015 and P< 0.001 respectively). The risk of arrhythmia was independently associated with sex, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia, hypothyroidism, cardiomyopathy, concentration difficulty, chest discomfort, and stress score in the multivariate logistic regression model.

Interpretation and conclusions: The results of this study demonstrate that AF arrhythmia is strongly associated with psychological stress and higher perceived stress scores. Interventions targeting reducing stress in those who are at high risk of developing AF are beneficial.

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Keywords
Atrial fibrillation Case-Control Study Cardiac arrhythmia Psychological stress
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How to Cite
1.
Khaleghparast S, Maleki M, Rafiee F, karimian samaneh, Sari L, Mazloomzadeh S. The Association of Perceived Stress and Atrial Fibrillation. J Tehran Heart Cent. 2024;.