ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Meta-Analysis of the Association Between Left-Ventricular Late Gadolinium Enhancement on Cardiac MRI and Atrial Fibrillation in Patients With Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy
Jiantao Song,
Peng Chen,
Xiangyue Pan,
Bo Chen,
Jianhui Zang,
Junjie Zhang,
Jiantao Song
Department of Imaging, Laizhou People's Hospital, Yantai, China
Search for more papers by this authorPeng Chen
Cardiology Department, Laizhou People's Hospital, Yantai, China
Search for more papers by this authorXiangyue Pan
Cardiology Department, Laizhou People's Hospital, Yantai, China
Search for more papers by this authorBo Chen
Cardiology Department, Laizhou People's Hospital, Yantai, China
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Jianhui Zang
Intensive Care Unit, Laizhou People's Hospital, Yantai, China
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Junjie Zhang
Emergency Department, Laizhou People's Hospital, Yantai, China
Search for more papers by this authorJiantao Song,
Peng Chen,
Xiangyue Pan,
Bo Chen,
Jianhui Zang,
Junjie Zhang,
Jiantao Song
Department of Imaging, Laizhou People's Hospital, Yantai, China
Search for more papers by this authorPeng Chen
Cardiology Department, Laizhou People's Hospital, Yantai, China
Search for more papers by this authorXiangyue Pan
Cardiology Department, Laizhou People's Hospital, Yantai, China
Search for more papers by this authorBo Chen
Cardiology Department, Laizhou People's Hospital, Yantai, China
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Jianhui Zang
Intensive Care Unit, Laizhou People's Hospital, Yantai, China
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Junjie Zhang
Emergency Department, Laizhou People's Hospital, Yantai, China
Search for more papers by this authorFirst published: 28 March 2025
Jiantao Song and Peng Chen contributed equally to this work and share the first authorship.
Funding: The authors received no specific funding for this work.
ABSTRACT
Purpose
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common complication in individuals with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), associated closely with myocardial fibrosis. Late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) detected by cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging is a marker of myocardial fibrosis and may indicate an increased risk of AF. This meta-analysis was performed to investigate the relationship between left ventricular (LV)-LGE and the occurrence of AF in patients with HCM.
Methods
A comprehensive search of the PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science databases was conducted to identify observational studies in which the prevalence or incidence of AF in patients with HCM with and without LV-LGE was compared. Random-effects models were employed to calculate pooled odds ratios (ORs) and mean differences (MDs), accounting for potential heterogeneity across studies.
Results
Fourteen reports of 15 observational studies performed with 4 947 patients with HCM were included. The pooled results revealed that CMR-detected LV-LGE was associated with a significantly greater risk of AF (OR, 1.97; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.41–2.75; p < 0.001, I2 = 60%). Subgroup analyses yielded consistent results across study designs, patient ages, sex distributions, analytical models, and study quality scores. Based on data from six studies in which it was reported, the extent of LV-LGE was greater in patients with AF than in those without AF (MD, 2.83%; 95% CI, 0.69–4.97; p = 0.01, I2 = 66%).
Conclusions
CMR-detected LV-LGE is associated with a heightened AF risk in patients with HCM.
Trial Registration
CRD42024621359
Conflicts of Interest
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
Open Research
Data Availability Statement
All data supporting the findings of this study are provided in the article.
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