Heart failure: a weak link in CHA(2)DS(2)‐VASc

AIMS: In atrial fibrillation, stroke risk is assessed by the CHA(2)DS(2)‐VASc score. Heart failure is included in CHA(2)DS(2)‐VASc, but the rationale is uncertain. Our objective was to test if heart failure is a risk factor for stroke, independent of other risk factors in CHA(2)DS(2)‐VASc. METHODS AND RESULTS: We studied 300 839 patients with atrial fibrillation in the Swedish Patient Register 2005–11. Three definitions of heart failure were used in order to assess the robustness of the results. In the main analysis, heart failure was defined by a hospital discharge diagnosis of heart failure as first or second diagnosis and a filled prescription of a diuretic within 3 months before index + 30 days. The second definition counted first or second discharge diagnoses <1 year before index + 30 days and the third definition any heart failure diagnosis in open or hospital care before index + 30 days. Associations with outcomes were assessed with multivariable Cox analyses. Patients with heart failure were older (80.5 vs. 74.0 years, P < 0.001) and had higher CHA(2)DS(2)‐VASc score (4.4 vs. 2.7, P < 0.001). The 1 year incidence of ischaemic stroke without warfarin was 4.4% with heart failure and 3.1% without. Adjustment for the cofactors in CHA(2)DS(2)‐VASc eradicated the difference in stroke risk between patients with and without heart failure (hazard ratio 1.01 with 95% confidence interval 0.96–1.05). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for CHA(2)DS(2)‐VASc was not improved by points for heart failure. CONCLUSIONS: A clinical diagnosis of heart failure was not an independent risk factor for stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation, which may have implications for anticoagulation management.