Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2025 Aug 12:18:4379-4390.
doi: 10.2147/IJGM.S527058. eCollection 2025.

Individuals Recovered from Severe COVID-19 are Predispose to Develop Atrial Fibrillation

Mücahid Yılmaz  1 , Çetin Mirzaoğlu  1
Affiliations

Individuals Recovered from Severe COVID-19 are Predispose to Develop Atrial Fibrillation

Mücahid Yılmaz et al. Int J Gen Med. .

Abstract

Aim: One of the primary contributors of the development of atrial fibrillation (AF) is autonomic dysfunction. It is suggested that heart rate turbulence (HRT) be utilized to assess autonomic nervous system (ANS) function. In this research, we analyzed the impact of COVID-19 on atrial fibrillation predisposition in the post-recovery period by analyzing atrial HRT measurements of patients who described palpitations in the post-COVID-19 period.

Methods: This study included 407 healthy participants without a positive COVID-19 record and 328 patients having a verified positive COVID-19 record (recovered COVID-19). All subjects were categorized into four groups (controls, recovered mild COVID-19, recovered moderate COVID-19 and recovered severe COVID-19) based on the severity value of their chest CT scan. The atrial HRT analyses were taken from a 24-hour electrocardiography- Holter recording.

Results: This study revealed that atrial HRT Onset values were significantly higher in the recovered severe COVID-19 group than the other groups. A positive association was found between the atrial HRT onset value and the chest CT severity value. However, no relationship was found between the atrial HRT onset value and the number of positive PCR test for COVID-19 or the amount of time that had passed since COVID-19. Regression analysis showed that the chest CT severity score, HT, smoking, and recovery from severe COVID-19, were independent predictors of atrial HRT Onset values and abnormal atrial HRT Onset existence.

Conclusion: Blunted atrial HRT, considered a significant predisposition to the development of atrial fibrillation, is more likely to occur in people who recovered from serious COVID-19 than in individuals who have never had severe COVID-19. These individuals should be carefully evaluated for atrial HRT.

Keywords: atrial fibrillation; atrial heart rate turbulence; autonomic nervous system disorder; recovery from severe COVID-19.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Regarding the research, authorship, and/or publishing of this paper, the authors have no possible conflicts of interest to report.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The Subjects inclusion flowchart diagram.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Measurement of the interval between RR1, RR2 and RR −1, RR-2 for supraventricular ectopic beats from 24 Hour ECG-Holter.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Comparison of Atrial HRT Onset values between the groups.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Spearman’s rho correlation analyses between Atrial HRT Onset value and groups.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Pearson’s correlation analyses between Atrial HRT Onset value and recovered COVID-19 subjects’ chest CT severity score.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Demirhan R, Çimenoğlu B, Yılmaz E. The effects of hospital organization on treatment during COVID-19 pandemic. South Clin Ist Euras. 2020;31:89–95 doi: 10.147/scie.2020.32154 - DOI
    1. Wang D, Hu B, Hu C, et al. Clinical characteristics of 138 hospitalized patients with 2019 novel coronavirus-infected pneumonia in Wuhan, China. JAMA. 2020;323(11):1061–1069. doi: 10.1001/jama.2020.1585 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Yenerçağ M, Arslan U, Şeker OO, et al. Evaluation of P-wave dispersion in patients with newly diagnosed coronavirus disease 2019. J Cardiovasc Med. 2021;22(3):197–203. doi: 10.2459/JCM.0000000000001135 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Yıldırım Y, Karaca O, Yılmaz FK, Güneş HM, Çakal B. Fragmented QRS on surface electrocardiography as a predictor of cardiac mortality in patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection. J Electrocardiol. 2021;66:108–112. doi: 10.1016/j.jelectrocard.2021.03.001 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bauer A, Malik M, Schmidt G, et al. Heart rate turbulence: standards of measurement, physiological interpretation, and clinical use: international society for holter and noninvasive electrophysiology consensus. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2008;52(17):1353–1365. doi: 10.1016/j.jacc.2008.07.041 - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources