Serum Potassium Levels Inversely Correlate with D-Dimer In Patients with Acute-Onset Atrial Fibrillation

Autor: Gianfranco Cervellin, Laura Bonfanti, Alessandra Picanza, Giuseppe Lippi
Jazyk: English<br />Portuguese
Rok vydání: 2015
Předmět:
Zdroj: Arquivos Brasileiros de Cardiologia, Vol 104, Iss 3, Pp 181-184 (2015)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 1678-4170
DOI: 10.5935/abc.20140187
Popis: Background: D-dimer values are frequently increased in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) compared to subjects in sinus rhythm. Hypokalemia plays a role in several cardiovascular diseases, but little is known about the association with AF. Objective: D-dimer values are frequently increased in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) compared with subjects in sinus rhythm. Hypokalemia plays a role in several cardiovascular diseases, but little is known about the association with AF. The aim of this study was to investigate correlations between D-dimer and serum potassium in acute-onset AF (AAF). Methods: To investigate the potential correlation between the values of serum potassium and D-dimer in patients with AAF, we retrospectively reviewed clinical and laboratory data of all emergency department visits for AAF in 2013. Results: Among 271 consecutive AAF patients with D-dimer assessments, those with hypokalemia (n = 98) had significantly higher D-dimer values than normokalemic patients (139 versus 114 ng/mL, p = 0.004). The rate of patients with D-dimer values exceeding the diagnostic cut-off was higher in the group of patients with hypokalemia than in those with normal serum potassium (26.5% versus 16.2%; p = 0.029). An inverse and highly significant correlation was found between serum potassium and D-dimer (r = −0.21; p < 0.001), even after adjustments for age and sex (beta coefficient −94.8; p = 0.001). The relative risk for a positive D-dimer value attributed to hypokalemia was 1.64 (95% CI, 1.02 to 2.63; p = 0.040). The correlation remained statistically significant in patients free from antihypertensive drugs (r = −0.25; p = 0.018), but not in those taking angiotensin-receptor blockers, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, or diuretics. Conclusions: The inverse correlation between values of potassium and D-dimer in patients with AAF provides important and complementary information about the thromboembolic risk of these patients.
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