Each September, clinical societies, patient organisations and research groups across Europe and beyond mark Atrial Fibrillation Awareness Month. The campaign is dedicated to the most common sustained cardiac arrhythmia: a condition that more than doubles the relative risk of ischaemic stroke and whose prevalence is expected to rise substantially.

A key reference for current atrial fibrillation care is the 2024 ESC Guidelines for the management of atrial fibrillation, which introduced the AF-CARE framework.

As stated by the official medical research AF is expected to double over the coming decades as the European population ages.

The purpose of the month is straightforward: to improve recognition of AF and its symptoms, to encourage timely diagnosis and to raise the standard of information available to patients and to those who care for them. A significant proportion of people living with AF remain undiagnosed and many of those already diagnosed have limited understanding of their condition and of the treatment options open to them.

AFFIRMO's role

For AFFIRMO, this awareness effort is directly connected to the work of the project. Our research has consistently pointed to the same conclusion: AF in older, multimorbid and polymedicated patients cannot be addressed in isolation from the other conditions and treatments these patients live with. This is now reflected in the 2024 ESC Guidelines which place comorbidity and risk factor management as the first pillar of the AF-CARE framework.

Providing clear, evidence-based information on this topic is part of our responsibility as a project. Throughout September, AFFIRMO will therefore support greater information and knowledge of AF through our channels presenting the findings and the practical implications of our work on integrated AF care in older patients.

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