Table.

Future directions and potential research in the investigation of obesity and AF.

Domain	Directions and potential research questions
Epidemiology and phenotype modeling	Diversity of adiposity phenotypes (DEXA, skin caliper measurement, obesity subphenotypes, CT imaging)
	Trajectories of obesity exposure and “obesity-years”
	Childhood obesity and early-age weight with longitudinal (i.e. multi-decade) AF risk
	Effect modification and augmented risk from comorbidities
Cohort studies and secondary data analysis	Weight loss, i.e. bariatric cohorts, and AF risk assessment
	Effect of weight loss on epicardial adiposity and AF risk
Atrial and cardiovascular remodeling	Community- and population-based studies of atrial remodeling and simultaneous biomarker assessment (i.e. adipokines, inflammatory markers)
	Regression (reverse remodeling) following bariatric intervention or weight loss
	Regression (reverse remodeling) with risk factor amelioration (e.g. OSA treatment)
Genetics and genomics	Gene-environment interaction relating obesity-years, genetic expression, and AF risk
	Relation of microRNA expression in AF to obesity-years

AF indicates atrial fibrillation; DEXA, dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry; CT, computerized tomography; OSA, obstructive sleep apnea.