Relation of Proinflammatory Activity of Epicardial Adipose Tissue to the Occurrence of Atrial Fibrillation

Inflammation of left atrial epicardial adipose tissue is associated with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation

“…Recently, the relationship between PAF and persistent AF and inflammatory activity of the EAT measured using fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography was reported [25]. In our study, the density of LA-EAT in CT images was significantly higher in the PAF group, while that of SAT was not.…”

Association Between Posterior Left Atrial Adipose Tissue Mass and Atrial Fibrillation

“…In a retrospective case-control analysis, including 21 patients with AF and 21 without AF who were imaged with positron emission tomography-CT, the uptake of F18-fluorodeoxyglucose by the EAT and intrathoracic fat, as a marker of inflammatory activity, was compared. 25 The F18-fluorodeoxyglucose uptake by the EAT surrounding the LA roof was significantly greater in patients with versus without AF (1.66±0.36 versus 1.23±0.32; P<0.001), whereas no differences were observed in the uptake by the intrathoracic fat (0.89±0.22 versus 0.81±0.17; P=0.24). These findings underscore the clinical relevance of EAT over other forms of visceral fat in the pathogenesis of AF.…”

Increased epicardial adipose tissue volume is associated with PR interval prolongation

“…Previous studies found that pericardial fat is associated with atrial conduction [24,25] and EAT is associated with blood pressure levels [26], AF [27] and cardiovascular disease [18,20,28,29]. Van Gaal et al showed that EAT is a biologically active organ that may play a role in the association between obesity and CAD [30].…”