Atrial fibrillation is the most common heart rhythm disorder in the world and for adults over 40 the lifetime risk of developing it is roughly one in three. That was the starting point of a coffee morning hosted by the Atrial Fibrillation Association in which Professor Gregory Lip spent nearly half an hour answering questions from patients and their families.

The session, chaired by the AF Association’s patient services manager Tracy Goodman, is deliberately practical. Why does AF seem to be everywhere now?

Professor Lip explained partly for greater awareness, partly an ageing population, partly the fact that cardiologists have become better at treating acute problems such as heart attacks and partly the smartwatches and rings that now alert people to an irregular pulse. Around a third of patients have no symptoms at all and for some the first sign of AF is the complication it causes. Among the concerns and questions people often raise, some were brought to light during the meeting with Lip.

Such as:

- Does an occasional paroxysmal AF carry the same stroke risk as permanent AF?

- Is it safe to pause anticoagulation before a minor procedure?

- Do anticoagulants interact with medicines for other conditions?

- Does AF shorten your life?

- Should you stop exercising?

- There is a cure on the horizon?

Professor Lip’s answers came back repeatedly to the same idea: AF is not a single, one-size-fits-all condition. It rarely occurs in isolation, and it must be managed rather than one problem at a time for stroke prevention, symptom management and the proactive care of blood pressure, weight, sleep and other cardiovascular risk factors, together.

That principle also sits at the centre of AFFIRMO  project that aim to make integrated, patient-centred care a reality for people living with atrial fibrillation alongside other long-term conditions. The AF Association is a partner in the consortium and events like this one are where the project’s thinking meets the people it is designed for.

The full recording of the coffee morning is available here.