Prophylactic statin administration may prevent shortening of the fibrillation cycle length in patients with new-onset atrial fibrillation.

Patients with recently diagnosed atrial fibrillation (AF) tend to exhibit a longer fibrillation cycle length (FCL) than those having a longer clinical history. However, the electrophysiological properties of new-onset AF may vary because of the clinical background of patients. In this study, we evaluated clinical factors to identify the determinants of FCL in new-onset AF. Electrocardiograms (ECGs) recorded from 2008 through 2011 were analyzed using our digital ECG-profiling system. In the 1,578 AF episodes recorded, 466 new-onset AF episodes were identified using clinical referral history and previous ECGs. After evaluating FCL in these new-onset AF episodes, using a customized fibrillation wave analyzer with fast Fourier transform analysis, we divided the patients into a longer-FCL group and a shorter-FCL group using the median FCL (158 ms). Propensity score matching yielded 135 matched pairs of patients with comparable mean ages between the two groups. Four factors (brain natriuretic peptide levels, and use of angiotensin receptor blockers, calcium channel blockers or statins) exhibited a significant difference between the two groups. Multivariate analysis revealed that statin use was the only significant independent predictor of longer FCL (Odds ratio, 3.86; 95% CI, 1.659.63; P = 0.003). Among various clinical parameters, statin use was related to longer FCL at the time of new-onset AF in patients with AF.