Caffeinated Coffee Consumption or Abstinence to Reduce Atrial Fibrillation

Does consumption of caffeinated coffee have a beneficial, detrimental, or neutral effect on the risk of recurrent atrial fibrillation (AF) episodes?

In this multicenter randomized clinical trial including 200 patients with persistent AF undergoing cardioversion, the risk of recurrent AF was significantly lower in the group allocated to coffee consumption (47%) compared with the abstinence group (64%).

Consumption of coffee and other caffeinated products may be reasonably considered in patients with AF.

Two hundred patients (mean [SD] age, 69 [11] years; 71% male) were randomized to caffeinated coffee consumption (n = 100) or coffee abstinence (n = 100). Baseline coffee intake was 7 cups (IQR, 7-18) per week in both groups. During follow-up, coffee intake in the consumption and abstinence groups was 7 (IQR, 6-11) and 0 (IQR, 0-2) cups per week, respectively, resulting in a between-group difference of 7 cups (95% CI, 7-7) per week. In the primary analysis, AF or atrial flutter recurrence was less in the coffee consumption (47%) than the coffee abstinence (64%) group, resulting in a 39% lower hazard of recurrence (hazard ratio, 0.61 [95% CI, 0.42-0.89]; P = .01). A comparable benefit of coffee consumption was observed with AF recurrence only. There was no significant difference in adverse events.

In this clinical trial of coffee drinkers after successful cardioversion, allocation to consumption of caffeinated coffee averaging 1 cup a day was associated with less recurrence of AF or atrial flutter compared with abstinence from coffee and caffeinated products.

Source Article >> https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/article-abstract/2841253