Trends in excess mortality associated with atrial fibrillation over 45 years (Framingham Heart Study): community based cohort study.

No evidence of a temporal trend in hazard ratios for the association between atrial fibrillation and all cause mortality was found. The mean number of life years lost to atrial fibrillation at 10 years had improved significantly, but a two year gap compared with individuals without atrial fibrillation still remained.