Arrhythmias & electrophysiology
Incidence of arrhythmias in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, obstructive sleep apnea, and overlap syndrome: A retrospective cohort study
Authors' conclusion
Patients with OS have a higher incidence of new-onset atrial fibrillation/flutter, ventricular tachycardia, and cardiac arrest compared with those with OSA and COPD alone.
Study context
- Population
- Adults (age ≥18 years) with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), or overlap syndrome (OS) without pre-existing arrhythmias, TriNetX Network, 2010–2020COPD only 2,438,454 · OSA only 1,960,845 · OS 440,018 · per cohort after propensity score matching (PSM), OS vs OSA-only comparison 359,496 · per cohort after PSM, OS vs COPD-only comparison 399,235
- Participants
- 440,018 / 2,438,454 / 1,960,845
- Exposure
- Incidence of new-onset atrial and ventricular arrhythmias in patients with COPD, OSA, and OS
- OSn = 440,018
- COPDn = 2,438,454reference
- OSAn = 1,960,845reference
- Outcome
- New-onset atrial fibrillation/flutter
- Follow-up
- Mean 5.3 years
Methodological detailsPropensity score matching (PSM)
- Propensity score matching (PSM)
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Adjusted odds ratio (95% CI)
OS vs COPD
1.472(1.449–1.496)
OS vs OSA
1.568(1.541–1.595)
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
| Outcome | aOR |
|---|---|
| New-onset ventricular tachycardiaOS vs COPD | 1.442 |
| New-onset ventricular tachycardiaOS vs OSA | 1.645 |
| Cardiac arrestOS vs COPD | 1.189 |
| Cardiac arrestOS vs OSA | 1.777 |
New-onset arrhythmias by order of diagnosis
- Patients with COPD preceding OSA diagnosis had higher odds of new-onset arrhythmias
Original publication
Incidence of arrhythmias in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, obstructive sleep apnea, and overlap syndrome: A retrospective cohort study. Heart Rhythm. Published 6 March 2025. doi:10.
Summarised from the published abstract; every number is checked against it