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Miguel A. Arias, MD, PhD; Ana M. Sánchez, MD; Alberto Alonso-Fernández, MD, PhD; Francisco García-Río, MD, PhD

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

In their interesting article, Dublin et al¹ explore in a population-based case-control study both the risk of new-onset atrial fibrillation (AF) according to body mass index and the extent to which the association between obesity and AF risk may be mediated by traditional cardiovascular risk factors.

Our comments are focused on the likely role of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) as one other possible factor contributing to the described association between obesity and new-onset AF, an aspect not evaluated in this study. Obstructive sleep apnea affects 17% to 24% of North Americans adults,² and patients with AF have a high prevalence of OSA.³ This medical condition is characterized by periodic reduction or cessation of breathing due to narrowing of the upper airways during sleep. Obstructive sleep apnea induces intermittent hypoxia, hypercapnia, sympathetic activation, and . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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RELATED LETTER

Atrial Fibrillation, Obesity, and Obstructive Sleep Apnea—Reply
Sascha Dublin, Thomas Lumley, Nicole L. Glazer, Bruce M. Psaty, Benjamin French, Kerri L. Wiggins, Nicholas L. Smith, and Susan R. Heckbert
Arch Intern Med. 2007;167(14):1553.
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