# Paulus Kirchhof
**Paulus Kirchhof** is a German cardiologist and electrophysiologist who became director of the Department of Cardiology at the University Heart and Vascular Center at the [University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-medical-center-hamburg-eppendorf) (UKE), where he took up the clinic directorship with a research focus. According to the EAST-AFNET 4 trial publication, he is known for research on atrial fibrillation and for leading the EAST-AFNET 4 trial, which changed how the condition is treated.[1](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8934687/) • [2](https://www.af-net.eu/en/neue-behandlungsoption-fur-akuten-schlaganfall-bei-vorhofflimmern-in-der-klinischen-prufung/) He also holds a position as Honorary Professor at Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Birmingham.[3](https://uke-io.de/fileadmin/user_upload/CV/CV_Kirchhof.pdf)
| Key facts | |
|---|---|
| Current position | Director of Cardiology (research focus), University Heart and Vascular Center UKE Hamburg, from 2020[3](https://uke-io.de/fileadmin/user_upload/CV/CV_Kirchhof.pdf) |
| Prior chair | Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine, University of Birmingham, 2011–2020[3](https://uke-io.de/fileadmin/user_upload/CV/CV_Kirchhof.pdf) |
| Training | Medicine at the Universities of Heidelberg and Münster; cardiology and electrophysiology training in Münster[4](https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/cardiovascular-sciences/Kirchhof-Paulus) |
| Signature work | EAST-AFNET 4, *New England Journal of Medicine*, 2020: early rhythm control reduced cardiovascular events (hazard ratio 0.79)[5](https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2019422) |
| Network role | Became chair of the board of AFNET (Atrial Fibrillation NETwork), founded 2003[3](https://uke-io.de/fileadmin/user_upload/CV/CV_Kirchhof.pdf) • [6](http://kv2020.vs10366.internet1.de/en/research-network/association) |
| Society roles | Member of the ESC Board, chairperson of the ESC education committee, member of the European Heart Rhythm Association board[7](https://www.heartrhythmcongress.org/speakers/view/435) |
| Current trials | EAST-STROKE (Horizon Europe, €7 million, 1746 patients, from 2025), and AF-B-STEP[2](https://www.af-net.eu/en/neue-behandlungsoption-fur-akuten-schlaganfall-bei-vorhofflimmern-in-der-klinischen-prufung/) • [8](https://www.uke.de/english/research/key-research-areas/hamburg-center-for-cardiovascular-research-hccr/research-groups/research-group-kirchhof/index.html) |
## Education and early career
Kirchhof studied Medicine at the Universities of Heidelberg and Münster in Germany, with internships and exchange years at [Georgetown University](https://www.edgepedia.org/georgetown-university) in Washington DC, Lille, Concepcion, and Zurich.[4](https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/cardiovascular-sciences/Kirchhof-Paulus) He began his research career during a research year at Georgetown University.[4](https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/cardiovascular-sciences/Kirchhof-Paulus) After his medical studies at Universitätsklinikum Münster he trained as a cardiologist and intensive-care physician, and worked as a senior physician (Oberarzt) at the Department of Cardiology and Angiology of Universitätsklinikum Münster until 2011.[9](https://www.monitor-versorgungsforschung.de/autoren/kirchhof-paulus/) His CV records that he trained and practiced as a cardiologist and electrophysiologist at the University of Münster from 1997 to 2011.[3](https://uke-io.de/fileadmin/user_upload/CV/CV_Kirchhof.pdf)
## Career record
Kirchhof moved to the [University of Birmingham](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-of-birmingham) in 2011 as Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine and consultant cardiologist at the University Hospitals Birmingham and Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS trusts, holding the chair until 2020.[3](https://uke-io.de/fileadmin/user_upload/CV/CV_Kirchhof.pdf) In Birmingham he co-founded the Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and was its director until his move to Hamburg; he also led a successful application for a British Heart Foundation Accelerator Award to the institute.[8](https://www.uke.de/english/research/key-research-areas/hamburg-center-for-cardiovascular-research-hccr/research-groups/research-group-kirchhof/index.html) In 2020 he became clinic director with a research focus (Klinikdirektor mit Schwerpunkt Forschung) at the Universitäres Herz- und Gefäßzentrum Hamburg, and became Honorary Professor at Cardiovascular Sciences in [Birmingham](https://www.edgepedia.org/birmingham).[10](https://www.uke.de/kliniken-institute/kliniken/kardiologie/ueber-die-klinik/team/index.html) • [4](https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/cardiovascular-sciences/Kirchhof-Paulus)
## Representative work
**EAST-AFNET 4** is the trial for which Kirchhof is best known; according to the PubMed record, it was published as first author in the *New England Journal of Medicine* on 29 August 2020.[5](https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2019422) • [11](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32865375/) The trial randomized 2789 patients with early atrial fibrillation, a median of 36 days after diagnosis, across 135 centers, and was stopped for efficacy at the third interim analysis after a median of 5.1 years of follow-up per patient.[5](https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2019422) Early rhythm-control therapy reduced the first primary-outcome event rate to 3.9 per 100 person-years, against 5.0 per 100 person-years under usual care (hazard ratio 0.79; 96% confidence interval 0.66 to 0.94; P=0.005).[5](https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2019422) Serious adverse events related to rhythm-control therapy occurred in about 4% of the early-treatment group versus about 1% of the usual-care group, while hospital nights, symptoms, and left ventricular function at two years did not differ significantly.[5](https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2019422)
The result changed practice because guidelines had previously restricted rhythm-control therapy to patients with symptomatic atrial fibrillation; EAST-AFNET 4 showed that early, systematic rhythm control improves clinical outcomes compared with symptom-directed rhythm control.[1](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8934687/) The results were presented as a Hot Line at ESC Congress 2020.[12](https://esc365.escardio.org/presentation/224179) Kirchhof also chaired the 2016 ESC guidelines for atrial fibrillation and has worked on several [European Society of Cardiology](https://www.edgepedia.org/european-society-of-cardiology) guidelines.[7](https://www.heartrhythmcongress.org/speakers/view/435)
## AFNET and research networks
AFNET (Atrial Fibrillation NETwork, Kompetenznetz Vorhofflimmern) was founded in 2003 as one of 21 research networks in Germany funded by the Federal Ministry of Research and [Education](https://www.edgepedia.org/education) (BMBF).[6](http://kv2020.vs10366.internet1.de/en/research-network/association) Until 2013 it was integrated into the University Hospital Münster; it was then registered as an independent, not-for-profit association (e.V.) in Germany.[6](http://kv2020.vs10366.internet1.de/en/research-network/association) Kirchhof became chair of its board.[3](https://uke-io.de/fileadmin/user_upload/CV/CV_Kirchhof.pdf) The network has delivered eight investigator-initiated controlled clinical trials, including EAST-AFNET 4, in up to 18 countries in Europe and North America, acting as legal sponsor for the later trials.[6](http://kv2020.vs10366.internet1.de/en/research-network/association) Kirchhof's own research has received continuous funding since 2000, including membership in the EU consortia EUTRAF, CATCH ME, and AFFECT-EU, two Leducq Foundation Transatlantic Networks (ENAFRA and Genetic topology of AF), and the DFG-funded collaborative research centers CRC 556 and CRC 656 in Münster.[8](https://www.uke.de/english/research/key-research-areas/hamburg-center-for-cardiovascular-research-hccr/research-groups/research-group-kirchhof/index.html)
## Current research
His Hamburg group studies how to improve the lives of patients with atrial fibrillation and heart failure, from genetic causes to novel interventions in clinical trials.[8](https://www.uke.de/english/research/key-research-areas/hamburg-center-for-cardiovascular-research-hccr/research-groups/research-group-kirchhof/index.html) The EU funds EAST-STROKE under [Horizon Europe](https://www.edgepedia.org/horizon-europe) with seven million euros over six years; the trial is recruiting, with 78 patients enrolled as of 3 September 2026 and 1746 patients planned, and partner studies prepared in Australia, Brazil, and the USA.[2](https://www.af-net.eu/en/neue-behandlungsoption-fur-akuten-schlaganfall-bei-vorhofflimmern-in-der-klinischen-prufung/) • [14](https://east-stroke.eu/news/) DFG grant records list EAST-STROKE as running since 2025, alongside projects on the 4q25/PITX2 atrial fibrillation risk locus and on FGF23 in atrial fibrillation.[13](https://gepris.dfg.de/person/1667456) The group also leads the EU Horizon Europe project AF-B-STEP.[8](https://www.uke.de/english/research/key-research-areas/hamburg-center-for-cardiovascular-research-hccr/research-groups/research-group-kirchhof/index.html)
## Honors and recognition
Kirchhof received the prize for the best medical thesis from Heart Center Münster in 1998, the Woldemar-Mobitz Prize in 2004, the Sibylle Hahne Prize for Medicine and Sciences from the University of Münster in 2005, the Bruno-Kisch Prize in 2006, and the Loogen Prize in 2016.[4](https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/cardiovascular-sciences/Kirchhof-Paulus) His research is funded by the [British Heart Foundation](https://www.edgepedia.org/british-heart-foundation), the Leducq Foundation, the European Union, and other funders.[7](https://www.heartrhythmcongress.org/speakers/view/435)
## References
1. Systematic, early rhythm control strategy for atrial fibrillation: the EAST-AFNET 4 trial (open-access analysis). https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8934687/
2. New treatment option for acute stroke in atrial fibrillation in a clinical trial, AFNET e.V. https://www.af-net.eu/en/neue-behandlungsoption-fur-akuten-schlaganfall-bei-vorhofflimmern-in-der-klinischen-prufung/
3. Professor Dr. med. Paulus Kirchhof, FESC, FRCP (Ed), CV, UKE International Office. https://uke-io.de/fileadmin/user_upload/CV/CV_Kirchhof.pdf
4. Professor Paulus Kirchhof, University of Birmingham. https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/cardiovascular-sciences/Kirchhof-Paulus
5. Early Rhythm-Control Therapy in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation (EAST-AFNET 4), N Engl J Med 2020. https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2019422
6. Association | Kompetenznetz Vorhofflimmern (AFNET). http://kv2020.vs10366.internet1.de/en/research-network/association
7. HRC 2026 Faculty, Professor Paulus Kirchhof. https://www.heartrhythmcongress.org/speakers/view/435
8. Hamburg Center for Cardiovascular Research, Research Group Kirchhof. https://www.uke.de/english/research/key-research-areas/hamburg-center-for-cardiovascular-research-hccr/research-groups/research-group-kirchhof/index.html
9. Prof. Dr. Paulus Kirchhof, Monitor Versorgungsforschung. https://www.monitor-versorgungsforschung.de/autoren/kirchhof-paulus/
10. UKE, Klinik und Poliklinik für Kardiologie: Team. https://www.uke.de/kliniken-institute/kliniken/kardiologie/ueber-die-klinik/team/index.html
11. Early Rhythm-Control Therapy in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation, PubMed record. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32865375/
12. ESC 365, EAST-AFNET 4 Hot Line, ESC Congress 2020. https://esc365.escardio.org/presentation/224179
13. DFG GEPRIS, Professor Dr. Paulus Kirchhof. https://gepris.dfg.de/person/1667456
14. News (east-stroke.eu). https://east-stroke.eu/news/
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Life and health › Life and health scientists › Medical and health researchers › Researchers in cardiovascular, metabolic, and endocrine research › Cardiac electrophysiology and arrhythmias › Surnames A to Li*
*Initially written Sep 21, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 25, 2026; Sep 30, 2026 · Edited: Sep 25, 2026; Sep 30, 2026 · Last review: Sep 30, 2026*
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