For adults with obesity, the potential association between glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1 RA) use and arrhythmia risk remains a clinically relevant question. In Journal of Arrhythmia, a real-world observational study evaluated the association between GLP-1 RA use and the risk of cardiac arrest and arrhythmias in obese patients. Using the TriNetX Global Collaborative Network, the analysis identified adults aged 18 years or older between January 2020 and December 2022 and compared patients treated with GLP-1 RAs with a matched control group without GLP-1 RA exposure.

After 1:1 propensity score matching, 342,753 patients were included in each group, with a mean age of 56.35 years. At 1-year follow-up, GLP-1 RA use was associated with a lower risk of cardiac arrest (relative risk [RR], 0.33; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.31–0.37; p < 0.01). Lower risks were also observed for atrial fibrillation or flutter (RR, 0.63; 95% CI, 0.60–0.66), ventricular fibrillation (RR, 0.45; 95% CI, 0.38–0.53), ventricular tachycardia (RR, 0.56; 95% CI, 0.52–0.60), second-degree atrioventricular block (RR, 0.72; 95% CI, 0.63–0.82), and complete heart block (RR, 0.62; 95% CI, 0.55–0.70), with all comparisons reaching statistical significance. Similar associations were reported at 3-year follow-up.

Overall, GLP-1 RA use was associated with a lower risk of cardiac arrest and arrhythmias in obese adults across short- and longer-term follow-up.