Background: Elderly patients are at high risk of both ischaemic and bleeding events, and the low body weight is considered a risk factor for major bleeding in atrial fibrillation (AF) patients on anticoagulation therapy. The aim of our study was to compare the safety and effectiveness of non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants (NOACs) versus well-controlled vitamin-K antagonists (VKA) therapy among AF patients aged >75 years and with a body weight <60 kg in a prospective registry setting. Methods: Data for this study were sourced from the Italian cohorts of PREFER in AF and PREFER in AF PROLONGATION registries. The occurrence of a composite of stroke, transient ischemic attack and systemic embolism (thromboembolic events) was the primary effectiveness endpoint. The occurrence of major bleeding was the primary safety endpoint. All-cause hospitalizations and all-cause death were the secondary endpoints. The net clinical benefit (NCB) was calculated in order to obtain an integrated assessment of the anti-thromboembolic and pro-haemorrhagic effects of NOACs vs. VKA. Results: Overall, 522 patients were included; 225 were on treatment with NOACs and 317 patients with VKA. The NOAC group more frequently featured a higher BMI and a higher prevalence of history of stroke/TIA and insulin-requiring diabetes; conversely, heart failure and chronic liver disease were less frequent in the NAOC group. In the unmatched study population, 18 patients (3.6% in the NOAC vs. 3.2% in the VKA group, p = 0.79) experienced thromboembolic events; 19 patients (1.78% in the NOAC vs. 4.73% in the VKA group, p = 0.06) experienced major bleeding events; and 68 patients were hospitalized during the follow-up (9.3% vs. 14.8%, p = 0.06). After balancing for potential confounders by using the 1:1 propensity score matching technique, 426 patients (213 on NOAC and 213 on VKA) were selected. We found no significant differences in terms of thromboembolic events (3.76% vs. 4.69%, p = 0.63), major bleeding events (n: 1.88% vs. 4.22%, p = 0.15) and hospitalizations (9.9% vs. 16.9%, p = 0.06) between NOAC vs. VKA matched population. Based on these incidences, we found a positive net clinical benefit (+1.6) of NOACs vs. VKAs. Conclusions: These real-world data suggest the safety and effectiveness of using NOACs in elderly patients with low body weight. Full article

Thrombus in the left atrial appendage is a contraindication for cardioversion. Sludge is considered similarly as threatening as thrombus; however, the risk of death and ischemic stroke in patients with atrial arrhythmia and thrombus or sludge is not well-known. This study focused on assessing the risk of death and ischemic stroke at one-year follow-up in patients with atrial arrhythmia and thrombus or sludge, as well as the effectiveness of anticoagulation in thrombus resolution. 77 out of 267 (29%) of patients who were scheduled for cardioversion were diagnosed with thrombus or sludge. The annual mortality in patients with thrombus or sludge was 23%. In the group without thrombus, the annual mortality was 1.6%. Overall, 17% of patients with thrombus or sludge experienced ischemic stroke. In patients without thrombus, the risk of stroke was 1%. Sludge increased risk of stroke compared to those without thrombus or sludge by 11% vs. 1%, respectively. No differences in mortality or stroke prevalence were observed between sludge and thrombus. Thrombus or sludge in the LAA have a poor prognosis. A diagnosis of sludge has a similar impact on risk of ischemic strokes as does a diagnosis of thrombus. Full article

The association between congestive heart failure (CHF) of the CHA₂DS₂-VASc scores and thromboembolic (TE) events in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) is a topic of debate due to conflicting results. As the importance of diastolic impairment in the occurrence of TE events is increasingly recognized, it is crucial to evaluate the predictive power of CHA₂DS₂-VASc scores with C criterion integrating diastolic parameters. We analyzed 4200 Korean nonvalvular AF patients (71 years of age, 59% men) to compare multiple echocardiographic definitions of CHF. Various guideline-suggested echocardiographic parameters for systolic or diastolic impairment, including left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) ≤ 40%, the ratio of early diastolic mitral inflow velocity to early diastolic velocity of the mitral annulus (E/E’) ≥ 11, left atrial volume index > 34 mL/m², and many others were tested for C criteria. Multivariate-adjusted Cox regression analysis showed that CHA₂DS₂-VASc score was an independent predictor for composite thromboembolic events only when CHF was defined as E/E’ ≥ 11 (hazard ratio, 1.26; p = 0.044) but not with other criteria including the original definition (hazard ratio, 1.10; p = 0.359). Our findings suggest that C criterion defined as diastolic impairment, such as E/E’ ≥ 11, may improve the predictive value of CHA₂DS₂-VASc scores. Full article

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) has been identified as a major risk factor for mortality after acute coronary syndrome (ACS). However, the long-term risk of ischemic stroke associated with new-onset atrial fibrillation (NOAF) in ACS remains controversial, and its gender-specific association is unknown. Methods: We analyzed the data of 10,137 ACS survivors included in a multicenter, prospective registry for Korean patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) between January 2004 and August 2014. Subjects were categorized into three groups (non-AF vs. NOAF vs. previous AF) based on medical history and electrocardiographic evidence of AF, either at admission or during hospitalization. Results: Among the total study population (72.3% men), 370 patients (3.6%) had NOAF and 130 (1.3%) had previous AF. During a median follow-up of 61 months (interquartile range, 38.8 to 89.3 months), 245 (2.4%) patients (218 (2.3%) non-AF vs. 15 (4.1%) NOAF vs. 12 (9.2%) previous AF, p < 0.001) experienced ischemic stroke. After adjustment for confounding variables, both NOAF (adjusted hazard ratio (HR) 1.87, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.09–3.24, p = 0.024) and previous AF (adjusted HR 4.00, 95% CI 2.03–7.87, p < 0.001), along with older age, diabetes, current smoker, and previous stroke were independent risk factors of ischemic stroke. In the gender-stratified analysis, men with previous AF but not NOAF had a significantly higher risk of ischemic stroke (adjusted HR 4.14, 95% CI 1.79–9.55, p = 0.001) than those without AF. In women, NOAF (adjusted HR 2.54, 95% CI 1.21–5.35, p = 0.014) as well as previous AF (adjusted HR 3.72, 95% CI 1.16–11.96, p = 0.028) was a strong predictor of ischemic stroke, and the predictive value was comparable to that of previous AF among patients with a CHA₂DS₂-VASc score ≥ 2. Conclusions: Both NOAF and previous AF were associated with ischemic stroke after AMI, but the impact of NOAF as a risk factor of ischemic stroke was significant only in women. Full article

Ischemic stroke risk in atrial fibrillation differs from patient to patient, depending on numerous variables. Many attempts have been made to translate this difference into simple numbers and to compare it to the hemorrhagic risk of anticoagulation. Different clinical scores have been studied to define a clear strategy. One score, the CHA₂DS₂-VASc score, has been extensively and successfully applied worldwide. Nevertheless, it is not yet the “perfect instrument”. Many proposals have been made to integrate its clinical parameters with some biomarkers to improve its predictive power. This short review describes some of these biomarkers and their possible implications in potentiating the efficacy of clinical scores. Full article