Periodontal disease and risk of atrial fibrillation or atrial flutter: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

Background: We conducted a study to evaluate the risk of atrial fibrillation (AF) and atrial flutter (AFL) in periodontal disease (PD) patients. Methods: Cohort studies that evaluate the risk of AF or AFL in PD patients were included. The risk was expressed in the pooled odd ratio (OR) with 95% confidence interval (CI). Results: A total of four cohort studies were included. We found that patients with PD have a significantly higher risk of AF/AFL compared to those without PD with the pooled OR of 1.33 (95% CI 1.29–1.38; p = 0.357, I2 = 3.0%). Conclusions: PD increases the risk of AF and AFL.