Short stature and ischemic stroke in nonvalvular atrial fibrillation: New insight into the old observation

Background For decades, repeated epidemiologic observations have been made regarding the inverse relationship between stature and cardiovascular disease, including stroke. However, the concept has not been fully evaluated in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). We investigated whether patient's height is associated with ischemic stroke in patients with nonvalvular AF and attempted to ascertain a potential mechanism. Methods All 558 AF patients were enrolled: 211 patients with ischemic stroke (144 men, 68 ± 10 years) and 347 no-stroke patients (275 men, 56 ± 11 years) as a control group. Clinical characteristics and echocardiographic parameters were compared between the two groups. Results (1) Stroke patients were shorter than those in the control group (164 ± 8, vs. 169 ± 8 cm, p < 0.001). However, body mass index failed to predict ischemic stroke; (2) Short stature (OR 0.93, 95% CI 0.91- 0.95, p < 0.001) along with left atrial (LA) anterior-posterior diameter and diastolic mitral inflow velocity (E) to diastolic mitral annuls velocity (E') (E/E') were independent predictor of stroke; (3) Height showed inverse correlation with E/E' independently, even after adjusting for other variables, including age, sex, and body weight, and comorbidities β - 0.20, p = 0.003); (4) LA size showed no correlation with stature (R = - 0.06, p = 0.18), whereas left ventricular size increases according to height of patients. Conclusions Short stature is associated with occurrence of ischemic stroke and diastolic dysfunction in patients with AF and preserved systolic function. Height is a non-modifiable risk factor of stroke and might be more important than obesity in Asian AF patients, who are relatively thinner than western populations.