About the study

The FIND-AF Pilot Implementation Study

The FIND-AF study is organised by the University of Leeds, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and selected GP practices in England.

The study will investigate if we can find more people who are currently undiagnosed with atrial fibrillation by using the FIND-AF computerised tool in GP records and an ECG recorder.

Results regarding the presence or absence of AF and other clinically relevant findings will be sent to participants and their GPs who can then discuss any changes in treatment that might be needed.

The study team will monitor each participant's medical record for up to 10 years to see what happens to them during this time and whether the use of FIND-AF to guide ECG monitoring for atrial fibrillation has made a difference.

The purpose of the FIND-AF study

We want to improve the early detection of atrial fibrillation. Early detection and treatment of atrial fibrillation is a priority in the NHS Long Term Plan to help patients live longer and healthier lives.

At present, some GPs look for atrial fibrillation opportunistically by simply taking the pulse of patients who could be visiting for any reason, or using a diagnostic device such as a hand-held electrocardiogram (ECG). However, this is only done some of the time, and only in some general practices. In addition, some people do not have atrial fibrillation all the time but go into and out of an irregular heart rhythm (known as paroxysmal or intermittent AF). 

Some studies have shown that providing handheld ECG recorders for people to use for a couple of weeks will increase detection of atrial fibrillation and this can lead to a later reduction in the risk of stroke. However these approaches have generally been offered to only older people (for example only people aged 75 years and older) as atrial fibrillation is more common in older populations. However, the number of new cases of atrial fibrillation picked up in this way is still quite small and people who are younger but are still likely to have undiagnosed atrial fibrillation are excluded.

We believe a better approach to target investigation of atrial fibrillation is to identify people at higher risk of atrial fibrillation, whatever their age, who can be invited to use an ECG recorder or wearable patch. In this study we will see if providing people identified as higher risk of atrial fibrillation by FIND-AF with an ECG recorder will increase the number of people we can detect with atrial fibrillation. The hope is that doing this will allow more people to be put on the right treatment at an earlier stage and so bring down their risk of having a stroke.

Any person above or equal to age of 30 years without a previous diagnosis of AF can take part to have their score risk calculated.

Organisation and funding

The FIND-AF study has been designed and is run by the University of Leeds, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and selected General Practices. It involves doctors, nurses, other healthcare professionals and researchers working in partnership.

The work to create the FIND-AF algorithm was conducted at the Leeds Institute of Data Analytics (LIDA), taking advantage of the state-of-the-art computing and data storage and security infrastructure. The LIDA multi-disciplinary team have also been fundamental to secure funding to conduct the FIND-AF Pilot study.

The study has been approved by an independent Research Ethics Committee, which includes medical professionals and members of the general public. The Ethics Committee has reviewed all the study documentation as well as checking that the question the study is hoping to answer is important enough to warrant the research being undertaken. 

FIND-AF is supported by the British Heart Foundation, the UK’s largest independent funder of cardiovascular research. Daiichi-Sankyo Ltd, who produce one of the anticoagulant medicines that reduces the risk of AF-related stroke, are also providing funding.

COPYRIGHT

The FIND-AF algorithm is protected by copyright law and the intellectual property rights are owned by the University of Leeds. Materials should not be copied, photocopied or reproduced, or distributed in electronic form. Any unauthorised use or distribution for any purpose is expressly forbidden and will constitute an infringement of the University of Leeds’ copyright and may lead to legal action.

CONTACT US

If you link to contact us, please email [email protected]

UKCA

Version number

1.0

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FIND-AF.leeds.ac.uk

This algorithm is intended for health care professionals to calculate a person’s FIND-AF score.

The FIND-AF algorithm calculates a person's risk of developing atrial fibrillation (AF) over the next 6 months.

All medical decisions need to be taken by a patient in consultation with their doctor.

The authors and the sponsors accept no responsibility for clinical use or misuse of this score.