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Background Consensus lacks concerning a bidirectional association between kidney function and atrial fibrillation (AF), but this is crucial information for prevention/treatment efforts for both chronic kidney disease and AF. Therefore, we investigated the bidirectional association between kidney function and AF. Methods and Results This study was a prospective cohort study including 9228 participants (mean age, 64.9 years; 57.2% women) with information on kidney function (estimated glomerular filtration rate [eGFR] based on serum creatinine [eGFRcreat], cystatin C [eGFRcys], or both [eGFRcreat‐cys], and urine albumin‐to‐creatinine ratio) and AF. Reduced kidney function was defined as eGFRcreat 2 . Cox proportional‐hazards, logistic regression, linear mixed, and joint models were used to investigate the association of kidney function with AF and vice versa. During follow‐up (median of 8.0 years), 780 events of incident AF occurred. Lower eGFRcys and eGFRcreat‐cys were associated with increased AF risk (hazard ratio [HR], 1.08 [95% CI, 1.03–1.14] and HR, 1.07 [95% CI, 1.01–1.14], respectively, per 10 mL/min per 1.73 m 2 eGFR decrease). For eGFRcys and eGFRcreat‐cys, 10‐year cumulative incidence of AF was 16% (eGFR 2 lower eGFRcreat and with a faster decline of eGFRcreat with age. Prevalent AF was associated with a 1.3‐fold increased risk of incident reduced kidney function. Conclusions Kidney function, especially eGFRcys, and AF are bidirectionally associated. There are currently no targeted prevention efforts for AF in patients with mild chronic kidney disease and vice versa. Our results could provide the first step to improve prediction/prevention of both conditions.

Background Limited population‐based data on the (sex‐specific) link between subclinical measures of peripheral atherosclerosis and new‐onset atrial fibrillation (AF) exist. Methods and Results Subclinical measures of peripheral atherosclerosis including carotid intima‐media thickness (cIMT), carotid plaque, and ankle‐brachial index (ABI) were assessed at baseline and follow‐up examinations. A total of 12 840 participants free of AF at baseline from the population‐based Rotterdam Study were included. Cox proportional hazards models and joint models, adjusted for cardiovascular risk factors, were used to determine the associations between baseline and longitudinal measures of cIMT, carotid plaque, and ABI with new‐onset AF. During a median follow‐up of 9.2 years, 1360 incident AF cases occurred among 12 840 participants (mean age 65.2 years, 58.3% women). Higher baseline cIMT (fully‐adjusted hazard ratio [HR], 95% CI, 1.81, 1.21–2.71; P =0.0042), presence of carotid plaque (fully‐adjusted HR, 95% CI, 1.19, 1.04–1.35; P =0.0089), lower ABI (fully‐adjusted HR, 95% CI, 1.57, 1.14–2.18; P =0.0061) and longitudinal measures of higher cIMT (fully‐adjusted HR, 95% CI, 2.14, 1.38–3.29; P =0.0021), presence of carotid plaque (fully‐adjusted HR, 95% CI, 1.61, 1.12–2.43; P =0.0112), and lower ABI (fully‐adjusted HR, 95% CI, 4.43, 1.83–10.49; P =0.0007) showed significant associations with new‐onset AF in the general population. Sex‐stratified analyses showed that the associations for cIMT, carotid plaque, and ABI were mostly prominent among women. Conclusions Baseline and longitudinal subclinical measures of peripheral atherosclerosis (carotid atherosclerosis, and lower extremity peripheral atherosclerosis) were significantly associated with an increased risk of new‐onset AF, especially among women. Registration URL: https://www.trialregister.nl , https://www.apps.who.int/trialsearch/ ; Unique identifier: NL6645/NTR6831.