BACKGROUNDThe CHA2DS2-VASc score is used clinically for stroke risk stratification in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). We sought to investigate whether the CHA2DS2-VASc score predicts stroke and death in Chinese patients with sick sinus syndrome (SSS) after pacemaker implantation and to evaluate whether the predictive power of the CHA2DS2-VASc score could be improved by combining it with left atrial diameter (LAD) and amino-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP).

METHODSA total of 481 consecutive patients with SSS who underwent pacemaker implantation from January 2004 to December 2014 in our department were included. The CHA2DS2-VASc scores were retrospectively calculated according to the hospital medical records before pacemaker implantation. The outcome data (stroke and death) were collected by pacemaker follow-up visits and telephonic follow-up until December 31, 2015.

RESULTSDuring 2151 person-years of follow-up, 46 patients (9.6%) suffered stroke and 52 (10.8%) died. The CHA2DS2-VASc score showed a significant association with the development of stroke (hazard ratio [HR] 1.45, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.20-1.75, P< 0.001) and death (HR 1.45, 95% CI 1.22-1.71, P< 0.001). The combination of increased LAD and the CHA2DS2-VASc score improved the predictive power for stroke (C-stat 0.69, 95% CI 0.61-0.77 vs. C-stat 0.66, 95% CI 0.57-0.74, P= 0.013), and the combination of increased NT-proBNP and the CHA2DS2-VASc score improved the predictive power for death (C-stat 0.70, 95% CI 0.64-0.77 vs. C-stat 0.67, 95% CI 0.60--0.75, P= 0.023).

CONCLUSIONSCHA2DS2-VASc score is valuable for predicting stroke and death risk in patients with SSS after pacemaker implantation. The addition of LAD and NT-proBNP to the CHA2DS2-VASc score improved its predictive power for stroke and death, respectively, in this patient cohort. Future prospective studies are warranted to validate the benefit of adding LAD and NT-proBNP to the CHA2DS2-VASc score for predicting stroke and death risk in non-AF populations.