scholarly journals Incidence of complications of antithrombotic treatment in patients with atrial fibrillation

2013 ◽  
Vol 66 (11-12) ◽  
pp. 470-475
Author(s):  
Sladjana Novakovic-Anucin ◽  
Sanja Gnip ◽  
Visnja Canak ◽  
Pavica Radovic ◽  
Jelena Kovacev ◽  
...  

Introduction. Atrial fibrillation increases the risk of ischemic stroke five fold, while the application of long-term anticoagulant therapy is associated with the occurrence of hemorrhagic complications. The aim of our study was to evaluate the incidence of thrombotic and hemorrhagic complications in patients with atrial fibrillation during antithrombotic treatment. Material and Methods. The study included 504 patients that were administered the primary (n=345) or secondary thromboprophylaxis after ischemic stroke (n=159), by applying vitamin K antagonists, or the combination of vitamin K antagonists and low-dose aspirin. The patients were followed for five months in the period of 24 years from 1988 to 2012, the total number of patient?s years being 1884, at the Clinical Center of Vojvodina. Thromboembolic and hemorrhagic complications were registered during regular check-up examinations. Results and Discussion. Our results indicate the low incidence of thromboembolic complications (0.01 patient per a year), with a lower incidence in the vitamin K antagonists group than in the group with the combination of vitamin K antagonists and aspirin (0.008 patient per a year versus 0.01 patient per a year). The incidence of hemorrhagic complications was higher in the group with the combined treatment compared to the group treated with vitamin K antagonists (0.1 patient per a year versus 0.06 patient per a year). The frequency of major bleeding was as low as 0.01 patient per a year and more frequent in the group with combined treatment (0.03 patient per a year). Conclusion. The overall incidence of complications in the study group was 0.08 patient per a year. The combined antithrombotic treatment increases the risk of hemorrhagic complications and affects the severity of bleeding. Oral anticoagulant therapy is more efficient in the prevention of ischemic stroke and thromboembolic complications in patients with atrial fibrillation.

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
pp. 69
Author(s):  
Shaojie Chen ◽  
K. R. Julian Chun ◽  
Zhiyu Ling ◽  
Shaowen Liu ◽  
Lin Zhu ◽  
...  

Transcatheter left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) is non-inferior to vitamin K antagonists (VKAs) in preventing thromboembolic events in atrial fibrillation (AF). Non-vitamin K antagonists (NOACs) have an improved safety profile over VKAs; however, evidence regarding their effect on cardiovascular and neurological outcomes relative to LAAO is limited. Up-to-date randomized trials or propensity-score-matched data comparing LAAO vs. NOACs in high-risk patients with AF were pooled in our study. A total of 2849 AF patients (LAAO: 1368, NOACs: 1481, mean age: 75 ± 7.5 yrs, 63.5% male) were enrolled. The mean CHA2DS2-VASc score was 4.3 ± 1.7, and the mean HAS-BLED score was 3.4 ± 1.2. The baseline characteristics were comparable between the two groups. In the LAAO group, the success rate of device implantation was 98.8%. During a mean follow-up of 2 years, as compared with NOACs, LAAO was associated with a significant reduction of ISTH major bleeding (p = 0.0002). There were no significant differences in terms of ischemic stroke (p = 0.61), ischemic stroke/thromboembolism (p = 0.63), ISTH major and clinically relevant minor bleeding (p = 0.73), cardiovascular death (p = 0.63), and all-cause mortality (p = 0.71). There was a trend toward reduction of combined major cardiovascular and neurological endpoints in the LAAO group (OR: 0.84, 95% CI: 0.64–1.11, p = 0.12). In conclusion, for high-risk AF patients, LAAO is associated with a significant reduction of ISTH major bleeding without increased ischemic events, as compared to “contemporary NOACs”. The present data show the superior role of LAAO over NOACs among high-risk AF patients in terms of reduction of major bleeding; however, more randomized controlled trials are warranted.


2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-53
Author(s):  
V. I. Petrov ◽  
O. V. Shatalova ◽  
A. S. Gerasimenko ◽  
V. S. Gorbatenko

Aim. To study the frequency of prescribing antithrombotic agents in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (AF) who were hospitalized in the cardiology department of a multidisciplinary hospital.Material and methods. A retrospective one-time study of medical records of 765 patients with non-valvular AF treated in the cardiology department of a multidisciplinary hospital in 2012 and 2016 was performed.Results. All patients were stratified in three groups depending on the CHA2DS2-VASc score. The frequency of prescribing antithrombotic agents was evaluated in each group. A low risk of thromboembolic complications was found in 1% (n=3) of patients in 2012 and 0.6% (n=3) in 2016. All these patients received antithrombotic agents. CHA2DS2-VASc=1 was found in 6% (n=15) of patients with AF in 2012 and in 3.4% (n=17) in 2016. A significant number of patients in this group received anticoagulant therapy with vitamin K antagonists (warfarin) or with direct oral anticoagulants. A high risk of thromboembolic complications (CHA2DS2-VASc≥2) was found in 93% of patient (n=245) in 2012 and in 96% (n=482) in 2016. Anticoagulant therapy was prescribed in 70.2% (n=172) patients with high risk in 2012 and 80% (n=387) in 2016. However, some patients with high risk of thromboembolic complications did not have the necessary therapy.Conclusion. Positive changes in the structure and frequency of prescribing anticoagulant drugs in patients with AF and a high risk of thromboembolic complications were found during the years studied. 


2019 ◽  
Vol 85 (6) ◽  
pp. 823-834 ◽  
Author(s):  
David J. Seiffge ◽  
Maurizio Paciaroni ◽  
Duncan Wilson ◽  
Masatoshi Koga ◽  
Kosmas Macha ◽  
...  

Blood ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 108 (11) ◽  
pp. 882-882
Author(s):  
Berardino Pollio ◽  
Giuseppe A. Demarie ◽  
Patrizia Ocello ◽  
Grazia Delios ◽  
Marco Tucciarone ◽  
...  

Abstract The perioperative management of oral anticoagulant therapy (OAT) often arouses controversy between surgeons and internists. In geriatric patients, cataract surgery for those who are taking vitamin K antagonists is a common clinical procedure. Phacoemulsification requires a 3 mm incision involving a tissue devoid of blood vessels. This study reports the experience of an Italian Anticoagulation Management Service (AMS) with 135 anticoagulated patients on long-term anticoagulant therapy who underwent phacoemulsification performed by the same ophthalmologist team from January 2001 to December 2005. The patients received either topical (30%) or peribulbar (70%) anaesthesia. Data were collected by physicians with specialized software, but the dosage of oral anticoagulant was manual. Two oral vitamin K antagonisists are available in Italy: acenocumarol and warfarin. We prepared all patients in accordance with the following standardized protocol : the scheduled dose was always omitted the day before surgery an INR measurement was provided 3–5 days before the invasive procedure; if the patient’s INR was below 3, we simply omitted the scheduled dose of the day before cataract surgery if the patient’s INR was above 3, we withheld two or more scheduled doses to allow the INR to fall to 2.5 or less 1 hour before cataract surgery, INR was measured if the patient’s INR was below 2.5, phacoemulsification was performed Results: This standardized procedural protocol allowed the surgeon to carry out phacoemulsification with INR always below 2.5. We observed only one peribulbar bleeding (0.7%) during peribulbar anaesthesia before the corneal incision was made. No thromboembolic complications were registered during three months of follow up. We compared our results with the data of an earlier cohort of 7014 conventional patients who underwent this eye surgery in the same ophthalmologic institute. We did not observe statistical differences between the two groups with regard to hemorragic complications. Conclusions: The risk of thromboembolism when antithrombotic therapy is interrupted is a well-grounded concern, particularly for patients with mechanical heart valves. Low molecular weight heparin bridging is a valid but more complicated alternative. Our study demonstrates the feasibility and safety of this simple standardized protocol which avoids OAT interruption. Therefore, we conclude that in patients receiving OAT, it is not necessary for the anticoagulant effect to wear off before cataract surgery is performed.


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