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Background Contemporary registries on atrial fibrillation (AF) are scare in North African countries. Hypothesis In the context of the epidemiological transition, prevalence of valvular AF in Tunisia has decreased and the quality of management is still suboptimal. Methods NATURE‐AF is a prospective Tunisian registry, involving consecutive patients with AF from March 1, 2017 to May 31, 2017, with a one‐year follow‐up period. All the patients with an Electrocardiogram‐documented AF, confirmed in the year prior to enrolment were eligible. The epidemiological characteristics and outcomes were described. Results A total of 915 patients were included in this study, with a mean age of 64.3 ± 22 years and a male/female sex ratio of 0.93. Valvular AF was identified in 22.4% of the patients. The mean CHA2DS2VASC score in nonvalvular AF was 2.4 ± 1.6. Monotherapy with antiplatelet agents was prescribed for 13.8% of the patients. However, 21.7% of the subjects did not receive any antithrombotic agent. Oral anticoagulants were prescribed for half of the patients with a low embolic risk score. In 341 patients, the mean time in therapeutic range was 48.87 ± 28.69%. Amiodarone was the most common antiarrhythmic agent used (52.6%). During a 12‐month follow‐up period, 15 patients (1.64%) had thromboembolism, 53 patients (5.8%) had major hemorrhage, and 52 patients (5.7%) died. Conclusions NATURE‐AF has provided systematic collection of contemporary data regarding the epidemiological and clinical characteristics as well as the management of AF by cardiologists in Tunisia. Valvular AF is still prevalent and the quality of anticoagulation was suboptimal.

Background: Most clinical studies of the clinical profile of Brugada syndrome (BS) have been conducted in either Asia, Europe, or America and their applicability to North African populations is largely unknown. The aim of the study was to analyze the clinical profile of BS in Tunisian patients. Methods: The clinical and follow-up data of 24 patients (22 men, mean age: 40.8 ± 13.7 years) were collected since 2002. Baseline characteristics, morbidity, and mortality data were obtained from medical records. Results: One patient (4.16%) survived sudden cardiac death (SCD), four patients (16.3%) had syncope, and 19 patients (79.1%) were asymptomatic. Eleven patients (45.8%) had a family history of SCD. Twenty patients showed a spontaneous coved-type ST-segment elevation on electrocardiogram and after medical challenge on the four remnants. An electrophysiological study was performed in 15 of 24 patients (62.5%), during which ventricular fibrillation was induced in six patients (40%); three of the six patients were previously asymptomatic. An implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) was implanted in 14 patients (58.3%). After a mean follow-up of 26 ± 21 months, one patient died from a noncardiac cause and one patient (with a history of aborted SCD) received an appropriate shock from his ICD. None of the asymptomatic and noninducible patients experienced a cardiac event. Conclusions: BS is present in the North African population and is probably under-recognized. Tunisian patients with BS share with their western and Asiatic counterparts similar clinical profile. (PACE 2011; 47–53)