Introduction: Left atrial (LA) dilation and female sex increase thromboembolic risk in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (AF); despite this, LA volume is not included in thromboembolic risk scores (CHA-DS2 and CHA₂DS₂-VASc).
Objective: This study assessed prospectively gender di-fferences in the relation between thromboembolic risk scores and left atrial size.
Methods: We included prospectively patients with pa-roxysmal and persistent AF. All patients were assessed by clinical and echocardiographic (systolic and diasto-lic left ventricle function, LA area and volume) para-meters.
Results: We included 190 patients: mean age 60.86±9.98 years, 42.6% men, 41.6% persistent AF. Mean duration of AF was 5.7±4 years. AF substrate was: 82% arteri-al hypertension, 15% diabetes mellitus, 27% coronary heart disease, 47% heart failure. Mean value of throm-boembolic scores (CHADS2 and CHA₂DS₂-VASc) were 1.8±1.2 and 3.2±1.8, respectively. Both scores were best correlated with the diastolic index (r=0.356 and 0.612, respectively; p=0.0001) and LA volume (r=0.432 and 0.359, respectively; p=0.0001), irrespective of gender. Thromboembolic risk scores value increased with LA dilation severity. Women have had a weaker correla-tion comparing with men between left atrial volume and thromboembolic risk scores (r=0.31 vs. r=0.51, p=0.0001).
Conclusions: Left atrial dilation is well correlated with thromboembolic risk score in atrial fibrillation pati-ents; in women this association is weaker.