Objectives:
To evaluate the safety of dual antiplatelet therapy in patients in whom long-term anticoagulation (AC) with warfarin is recommended.
Background:
It is well established that antiplatelet therapy with aspirin ad thienopiridines is required following percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with stent implantation. Some patients have also indication for long-term AC. The optimal antithrombotic strategy following PCI in such patients is unclear.
Methods:
All consecutive patients who underwent PCI with stent implantation discharged on triple therapy (defined as the combination of aspirin and thienopyridines and AC with warfarin) were analyzed.
Results
One-hundred and twenty-seven patients with 224 lesions: 86.6% males, mean age 69.9±8.8 years were included in the study. Drug-eluting stents (DES) were positioned in 71 (55.9%) and bare metal stent (BMS) in 53 (41.7%) patients. Atrial fibrillation (AF) was the main indication (59.1%) for AC treatment, followed by prosthetic valves (12.4%) and mural left ventricular (LV) thrombus (9.1%). Average risk of thromboembolic events in the subgroup with AF was 1.79 ± 1.23 according to CHADS2 score. The mean triple therapy duration was 5.6±4.6 and clinical follow-up 21.0±19.8 months. During the triple therapy period, 6 patients (4.7%) developed major bleeding complications; 67% of which occurred within the first month. No significant differences between DES and BMS were observed in the incidence of major (respectively 5.6% vs. 3.8%, p=1.0) and minor bleeding (respectively 1.4% vs. 3.8%, p=0.57) and mortality (respectively 5.6% vs. 1.9%, p=0.39). Four patients died in DES group: 3 of major bleeding complications and one of ischemic stroke. The only death in the BMS group was due to subarachnoid hemorrhage. A significant difference was observed in favor of DES in target vessel revascularization (14.1% vs. 28.3%, p=0.041).
Conclusions:
While on triple therapy, major bleeding complications occurred in 4.7% of patients, half of them were lethal and most (67%) occurred within the first month.
Long-term Care After Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: Focus on the Role of Antiplatelet Therapy