Comprehensive Use of Routine Clinical Parameters to Identify Patients at Risk of New-Onset Atrial Fibrillation in Acute Myocardial Infarction

(1) Background: New-onset atrial fibrillation (NOAF) is a significant complication of acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Our study aimed to investigate whether routinely checked clinical parameters aid in NOAF identification in modernly treated AMI patients. (2) Patients and methods: Patients admitted consecutively within 2017 and 2018 to the University Clinical Centre in Gdansk (Poland) with AMI diagnosis (necrosis evidence in a clinical setting consistent with acute myocardial ischemia) were enrolled. Medical history and clinical parameters were checked during NOAF prediction. (3) Results: NOAF was diagnosed in 106 (11%) of 954 patients and was significantly associated with in-hospital mortality (OR 4.54, 95% CI 2.50-8.33, p < 0.001). Age, B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP), C-reactive protein (CRP), high-sensitivity troponin I, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, potassium, hemoglobin, leucocytes, neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio, left atrium size, and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) were associated with NOAF in the univariate logistic analysis, whereas age >= 66 yo, BNP >= 340 pg/mL, CRP >= 7.7 mg/L, and LVEF <= 44% were associated with NOAF in the multivariate analysis. (4) Conclusions: NOAF is a multifactorial, significant complication of AMI, leading to a worse prognosis. Simple, routinely checked clinical parameters could be helpful indices of this arrhythmia in current invasively treated patients with AMI.