Prevalence and Incidence of Type 1 Brugada Pattern: A 30-Year Experience at Mayo Clinic

To identify the incidence and prevalence of type 1 Brugada pattern at Mayo Clinic during 30 years. We retrospectively reviewed the electronic medical records from 1992 to 2021 at Mayo Clinic Enterprise. Patients with type 1 Brugada pattern electrocardiogram (ECG) were identified by a systematic keyword search. Incidences are calculated by decade. The incidence rate ratios (IRRs) between races were then calculated. Analysis of the association between groups and major arrhythmic event–free survival was conducted. The study analyzed 5,381,186 ECGs from 2,304,809 patients; 150 patients had at least 1 ECG with a type 1 Brugada pattern (76.0% Brugada syndrome, 62.0% spontaneous, 18.7% fever induced, and 10.7% drug induced). The mean follow-up was 6.6±6.7 years. The incidence (per 100,000 person-years) of type 1 Brugada pattern increased during the past 3 decades (0.505 [95% CI, 0.203 to 1.040], 3.015 [95% CI, 2.272 to 3.925], and 3.916 [95% CI, 3.128 to 4.842]). The incidence in Black patients was approximately 1.5-fold higher compared with non-Hispanic White patients (IRR, 1.492 [95% CI, 0.610 to 3.649]; P=.38). The incidence in Hispanic White patients was 3-fold higher than in non-Hispanic White patients (IRR, 3.021 [95% CI, 1.410 to 6.474]; P=.005). The incidence in Asian patients was 2-fold higher than in Hispanic patients (IRR, 1.894 [95% CI, 0.705 to 5.086]; P=.21). The overall prevalence of the type 1 Brugada pattern between 2010 and 2021 was 10.094 per 100,000. The major arrhythmic events occurred in 8.6%, 7.1%, 12.5%, and 7.7% for spontaneous, fever-induced, drug-induced, and other type 1 Brugada patterns, respectively, during follow-up. The incidence of type 1 Brugada pattern at Mayo Clinic has increased during 3 decades. The prevalence of type 1 Brugada pattern in the United States is higher than previously reported. Type 1 Brugada pattern in Black and Hispanic populations is more common than previously suspected.