Ethnic differences in patient perceptions of atrial fibrillation and anticoagulation therapy - The West Birmingham Atrial Fibrillation project

Background and Purpose-We hypothesized that different ethnic groups would have different levels of knowledge and perceptions of atrial fibrillation (AF) and of their antithrombotic therapy. To investigate this further, we conducted a cross-sectional survey of patients with documented chronic AF who were attending the anticoagulation clinic in our city center teaching hospital, serving a multiethnic population. Methods-We surveyed 119 patients (77 male; mean age 69 9 years [mean+/-SD]); of these, 39 were Indo-Asian (33%), 27 Afro-Caribbean (23%), and 53 white (44%). Results-Only 63% of patients in the overall study cohort were aware of their cardiac condition, with Indo-Asians and Afro-Caribbeans significantly less aware of AF compared with the white patients (P