Dataset Information

Why Did All Patients with Atrial Fibrillation and High Risk of Stroke Not Receive Oral Anticoagulants? Results of the Polish Atrial Fibrillation (POL-AF) Registry.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Most atrial fibrillation (AF) patients are at high risk of thromboembolic, and the use of oral anticoagulants (OACs) is advised in such cases. The aim of the study was to evaluate the frequency at which OACs were used in patients with AF and high risk thromboembolic complications, and identify factors that result in OACs not being used in the researched group of patients.

Methods

The prospective, multicenter and non-interventional POL-AF registry is a study that includes AF patients from ten Polish cardiology centers. They were consecutively hospitalized between January and December of 2019. All the patients in the study were of high stroke risk.

Results

A total of 3614 patients with AF and high stroke risk were included. Among the total study population, 91.5% received OAC therapy; antiplatelet therapy was prescribed for 3.7% of patients, heparin for 2.7%, and 2.1% of patients did not receive any stroke prevention therapy. Independent predictors of no OAC prescription were intracranial bleeding (OR 0.15, 95%CI 0.07-0.35, p < 0.001), gastrointestinal bleeding (OR 0.25, 95%CI 0.17-0.37, p < 0.001), cancer (OR 0.37, 95%CI 0.25-0.55, p < 0.001), hospitalization due to acute coronary syndrome (OR 0.48, 95%CI 0.33-0.69, p < 0.001), and anemia (OR 0.62, 95%CI 0.48-0.81, p < 0.001).

Conclusions

Most AF patients with a high thromboembolic risk received OACs. The factors predisposing a lack of OAC use in these patients were conditions that significantly increased the risk of bleeding complications.

SUBMITTER: Szpotowicz A

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8509343 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Similar Datasets

Project description:Current guidelines do not suggest in which groups of patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) individual non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants (NOACs) should be used for the prevention of thromboembolic complications. The aim of this study was to evaluate the frequency of use of apixaban, dabigatran, and rivaroxaban, and attempt to identify factors predisposing their administration. The Polish Atrial Fibrillation (POL-AF) registry is a prospective, non-interventional study, including consecutive patients with AF hospitalized in ten Polish cardiology centers during the period ranging from January to December 2019. In this study, all patients were treated with NOACs. Among the 2971 patients included in the analysis, 40.4% were treated with rivaroxaban, 32% with apixaban, and 27.6% with dabigatran. The mean age of the total population was 72 ± 11.5 years and 43% were female. A reduced dose of NOAC was used in 35% of patients treated with apixaban, 39.7% of patients treated with dabigatran, and 34.4% of patients treated with rivaroxaban. Independent predictors of the use of apixaban were previous bleeding (OR 2.37, CI 1.67–3.38), GFR < 60 mL/min (OR 1.38, CI 1.25–1.64), heart failure (OR 1.38, CI 1.14–1.67) and age (per 5 years) (OR 1.14, CI 1.09–1.19). GFR < 60 mL/min (OR 0.79, CI 0.66–0.95), female (OR 0.8, CI 0.67–0.96) and age (per 5 years) (OR 0.95, CI 0.91–0.99) diminished the chance of using dabigatran. Previous bleeding (OR 0.43, CI 0.28–0.64), vascular disease (OR 0.84, CI 0.70–0.99), and age (per 5 years) (OR 0.94, CI 0.90–0.97) diminished the chance of choosing rivaroxaban. In hospitalized patients with AF, the most frequently chosen NOAC was rivaroxaban. Apixaban was chosen more often in patients after bleeding, and in those who were advanced in years, with heart failure and impaired renal function. Impaired renal function and female gender were factors that diminished the chance of using dabigatran. Previous bleeding and vascular disease was the factor that diminished the chance of using rivaroxaban. Dabigatran and rivaroxaban have been used less frequently in elderly patients.

Project description:BackgroundAlthough triple antithrombotic therapy (TAT) is recommended in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), guidelines allow an option of dual antithrombotic therapy (DAT). This study assesses the everyday practice of 10 cardiology departments in antithrombotic therapy in AF patients undergoing PCI and its agreement with current guidelines.MethodsThis analysis included medical data of AF patients enrolled in the prospective, observational registry (The POLish Atrial Fibrillation-POL-AF) that underwent PCI [elective or due to acute coronary syndrome (ACS)].ResultsOf the 3,999 consecutive subjects included, a final analysis was performed on 359 patients that underwent PCI: 148 with urgent PCI due to ACSand 211 patients with elective PCI. Eighty patients in the ACS-group and 120 patients in the elective-PCI group were treated with TAT, although guidelines also allowed DAT. Of 316 patients treated with oral anticoagulants as a part of combination therapy, 275 were on non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulant (NOAC). Reduced doses of NOAC were used in 74 patients treated with rivaroxaban, 60 patients with dabigatran, and 54 patients with apixaban. The proportion of patients treated with reduced NOAC doses adequately to the guidelines was 29%, 100%, and 33% for rivaroxaban, dabigatran, and apixaban, respectively. Inappropriate low doses of NOACs were used in 71% of subjects on rivaroxaban and 67% on apixaban.ConclusionsIn patients with AF undergoing PCI, NOACs are definitely preferred over vitamin-K antagonists (VKAs) in TAT/DAT, and an aggressive antithrombotic strategy with TAT is frequently chosen even if DAT is permissible by the guidelines. Label adherence of using reduced NOAC dose during combination therapy is not satisfactory for apixaban and rivaroxaban and probably results from too cautious an approach to the known indications for reduced therapy. The study is registered in the database Clinical Trials-NCT04419012.