TUESDAY, Aug. 11, 2026 (HealthDay News) -- High-dose eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA)/docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) treatment is associated with increased atrial fibrillation (AF) risk in patients at high cardiovascular disease risk, according to a study published online July 28 in Circulation: Arrhythmia and Electrophysiology.
Nada R. Abuknesha, Ph.D., from the Fatty Acid Research Institute in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and colleagues note that meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials have raised concerns that omega-3 fatty acid treatment may increase AF risk. Therefore, they conducted an expanded meta-analysis to examine whether treatment with omega-3 fatty acids increases the risk for AF and included more eligible omega-3 randomized controlled trials with AF incidence data. The meta-analysis included 35 randomized controlled trials, with 37 data sets, including 114,592 participants.
The researchers found that only studies including patients at high risk for cardiovascular disease, treated with high doses of EPA/DHA (>1,500 mg/day), showed a significant increase in the risk for AF (pooled odds ratio, 1.43; absolute risk difference, 0.8 percent). None of the other three risk-dose combination groups (high risk/low dose, low risk/low dose, and low risk/high dose) showed significant levels of AF risk.
"Our findings show that the relationship between omega-3s and atrial fibrillation is much more nuanced than previous headlines suggested," senior author William S. Harris, Ph.D., also from the Fatty Acid Research Institute, said in a statement. "For the vast majority of people taking nutritional doses of omega-3s, these data should provide reassurance that there is no meaningful increase in atrial fibrillation risk."
One author disclosed ties to CardioTabs, a company that sells omega-3 products; a second author disclosed ties to OmegaQuant Analytics, which offers blood fatty acid testing (including the Omega-3 Index).
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