Age and PITX2 variant predict atrial fibrillation after heart surgery
In 364 cardiac surgery patients, age (odds ratio 1.71 per decade) and a PITX2 variant (odds ratio 1.91) independently predicted postoperative atrial fibrillation, while inflammatory markers did not.
Research Square
In a preprint analyzing a prospective cohort of 364 adults undergoing first-time cardiac surgery without pre-existing atrial fibrillation, researchers evaluated first-day postoperative inflammatory markers alongside four arrhythmia-related genetic variants. A treated first episode of atrial fibrillation from the second postoperative day onward occurred in 115 patients (31.6%). Only the rs67249485 variant upstream of PITX2 was associated with the arrhythmia, with a risk-allele frequency of 23.5% in patients who fibrillated compared to 15.7% in those who did not. In multivariable analysis, only age (odds ratio 1.71 per decade) and heterozygous PITX2 genotype (odds ratio 1.91) remained independent predictors. Neither postoperative inflammatory markers nor ten inflammation-related variants distinguished the groups.
Why it matters
The findings suggest that susceptibility to post-surgical atrial fibrillation may be governed by chronological age and intrinsic genetic predisposition rather than acute perioperative inflammation.
Caveats
This observational study evaluated a single cohort of 364 analyzed patients and is a preprint that has not yet undergone peer review.
- Cardiac surgery
- Cardiopulmonary bypass
- Inflammation
- Atrial fibrillation
- Postoperative inflammatory markers
- Humans
The paper
Szofer-Sendrowska A, Sendrowska MK, Sendrowski D et al.
Research Square · 4 Oct 2026 · Preprint, not peer-reviewed