Atrial fibrillation and atrial flutter in the practice of the emergency medical team in Poland

Abstract

Background: Atrial Fibrillation (AF) is one of the most common heart arrhythmias globally. It is characterized by irregular, chaotic contractions of the atrial muscle, leading to an irregular and often rapid heart rhythm. The prevalence of this arrhythmia increases with age, which is associated with both the aging population and cardiovascular risk factors such as hypertension, coronary artery disease, and diabetes. Atrial Flutter (AFL) represents a less common variant of atrial fibrillation, occurring significantly less frequently - in relation to atrial fibrillation (AF), it is estimated to account for less than one-tenth of cases. The aim of the study was to analyze emergency medical services delivered to patients diagnosed with atrial fibrillation (AF) and atrial flutter (AFL) in the Voivodeship of Warmia and Mazury (Poland). The patients were classified according to the 10th Revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10 )[1]. Methods: The study was based on a retrospective data analysis. From a total population of 400,251 subjects (n= 400,251), 4715 patients were selected for the study. The majority of the patients were women (n=2941; 62.38%), whereas men accounted for 37.62% of the examined sample (n=1774). The analysis relied on a database administered by the Governor of the Voivodeship of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn [2]. The analyzed data included the area of intervention, the patient's age and sex, and the diagnoses made by physicians, paramedics, and emergency nurses. Three research hypotheses postulating the presence of relationships between the patient's sex and the diagnosis (1), the patient's age and the diagnosis (2), and a life-threatening emergency and the patient's age (3) were formulated. Results: The results of the study suggest that the patient's sex affects the medical diagnosis. In particular, women were more frequently diagnosed with chest pain, whereas the probability of the remaining diagnoses was similar in both sexes. The patient's age does not significantly influence the diagnosis. The patient's sex is not a significant predictor of a life-threatening emergency. Conclusion: The conducted study on the dataset from the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship revealed significant correlations between demographic variables and the diagnosis of atrial fibrillation (AF) and atrial flutter (AFL) in patients. Analyzing this data may have significant implications for emergency medical systems, enabling the adaptation of intervention strategies to different patient categories.