Influence of renal function on anticoagulation control in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation taking vitamin K antagonists.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) has been related to poor anticoagulation control and an increased risk of bleeding. This study aims to evaluate the association between impaired renal function (eGFR <60 mL/min/1.73 m2 ) and anticoagulation control in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (AF) on vitamin K antagonists (VKA) therapy. We also assessed whether the predictive value of the SAMe-TT2 R2 score prevailed for subgroups both with and without CKD. METHODS: This is an ancillary analysis of 1381 patients from the PAULA study, which was a cross-sectional, retrospective and nationwide multicenter study. RESULTS: A total of 370 patients had eGFR <60 mL/min/1.73 m2 . Anticoagulation control levels progressively worsened across each stage of CKD. Multiple linear regression analysis showed CKD as an independent predictor of time in therapeutic range (TTR). In the subgroup of patients with preserved renal function, female sex, diet affecting INR, polypharmacy and amiodarone were associated with poorer TTR. The SAMe-TT2 R2 score had a significant but modest predictive value for TTR<65% (AUC, area under the curve 0.558, P = .002). In the subgroup of patients with CKD, the SAMe-TT2 R2 (>2 points) showed no significant predictive capacity for TTR (AUC 0.528, P = .354). The average TTR was similar for both sexes (P = .255), but with a higher percentage of males subjects with TTR ≥65% (P = .013). CONCLUSION: Chronic kidney disease is associated with poor anticoagulation control in patients with non-valvular AF taking VKA. The SAMe-TT2 R2 score was not predictive of poor TTR in the subgroup with CKD, although a modest predictive value for poor TTR was found in those without CKD.

[The change of paradigm in stroke prevention in atrial fibrillation. Challenges and emerging opportunities for the family physician]. / El cambio de paradigma en la prevención de ictus en la fibrilación auricular. Retos y oportunidades emergentes para el médico de familia.

Atrial fibrillation (AF), is the most prevalent sustained arrhythmia in general population, affecting up to 10% in patients of advanced age. AF doubles overall mortality and increases up to 5-6 times the risk of stroke, which have the characteristic of being particularly harmful. The basis of treatment on AF are the rhythm or rate control and the prevention of thromboembolism. For the latter purpose the treatments that have been most effective are oral anticoagulants. For decades and until just a few years ago, the only oral drugs available for this purpose have been the anti-vitamin K, mainly represented in our country by acenocoumarol and lesser extent by warfarin. These drugs have been shown to reduce strokes and mortality compared to placebo and with antiplatelet drugs, so have been and continue to be the standard treatment and the comparator for all antithrombotic drugs in patients with AF. The variability in the therapeutic response, their food and drugs interactions and their narrow therapeutic window that entail the need to frequently monitoring, has led to look for new drugs that, at least maintaining their advantages, where able to avoid some of the drawbacks. Currently we have a number of new drugs that meet these premises, although they have the disadvantage of a higher direct cost. The arrival of these new oral anticoagulants (NOAC) make necessary to know them well, reach a consensus for a correct use and to make changes in the clinical management of these patients when they are used. In this article we review the indications and way of use of the different options (classics and news) of antithrombotic therapy in patients with AF, the situation of anticoagulated patients in our country, the characteristics of the NOAC, its recommendations for use and the challenges to that are subjected family physicians regarding these changes.

[Patients' characteristics and clinical management of atrial fibrillation in primary healthcare in Spain: FIATE Study]. / Características de los pacientes y abordaje terapéutico de la fibrilación auricular en atención primaria en España: Estudio FIATE.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The main therapeutic objective in atrial fibrillation (AF) patients is stroke prevention. This study is aimed to determine whether the anticoagulant therapy may be appropriate regarding to the Guidelines and patients' profile in primary healthcare in Spain. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A national, multicenter, cross-sectional study of AF patients attended in primary healthcare in Spain has been conducted. The study involved 185 family physicians whose patients were randomized. RESULTS: A total of 3,759 AF patients were randomized from the clinical records, and 2,070 were included in the study, at an average age of 74 (11) years old (50.7% female). Most of them (78%) had permanent AF and high comorbidity rates (hypertension 75%, obesity 30%, diabetes 27%, heart failure 20%, coronary heart disease 17%, and social risk 15%). Patients diagnosed in primary healthcare were more frequently asymptomatic than in hospital setting (36%; P<.001). The therapeutic strategy was based on the heart rate control in 4 out of 5 patients. Anticoagulation therapy was widely used (84%), more frequently in patients with permanent vs. non-permanent AF (91 vs. 60%, P<.001). Follow-up and monitoring was mainly performed in primary care (72%). The anticoagulation control was suboptimal, with a 66% of the international normalized ratio (INR) in therapeutic range, dropping to 33% when the last 3 available INR were included (P<.001). CONCLUSIONS: A high rate of patients with anticoagulant therapy in primary healthcare has been found in this research. INR control, however, remains suboptimal. Heart rate control is the most commonly used strategy. The decision about the anticoagulation should be based on the thromboembolic risk rather than in the arrhytmia type.

[Coronary risk in the population of the Canary Islands, Spain, using the Framingham function]. / Estimación del riesgo coronario en la población de Canarias aplicando la ecuación de Framingham.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Although ischemic cardiopathy mortality in the Canary Islands is among the highest in Spain, the specific coronary risk for its population has not been estimated. This study presents the first cardiovascular risk charts for the Canarian adult population and compares them with those previously published on Gerona, Spain. SUBJECTS AND METHOD: A cross-sectional study of 4915 subjects, aged 25-74, that had been enrolled in the cohort study CDC of the Canary Islands. The standardized prevalence of obesity, overweight, smoking, hypertension and diabetes were estimated with the information obtained from personnel interviews, physical exams and blood samples. Those prevalences were used to calibrate the Framingham coronary function and to elaborate coronary risk charts. RESULTS: The crude prevalence of obesity was 30% (95% confidence interval [CI], 28.7-31.3), overweight 39% (95% CI, 37.6-40.4), smoking 26% (95% CI, 24.8-27.2), hypertension 40% (95% CI, 38.6-41.4) and diabetes 12% (95% CI, 11.1-12.9). In most of the factors, these prevalences were higher than Gerona's population in every age group and gender. On average, the estimated coronary risk of the islanders was 89% higher than Gerona's risk (94% higher in males and 87% in females), which is concordant with the distance between both populations in the national mortality statistics. CONCLUSIONS: The high prevalence of obesity and other factors in the Canarian population implies important coronary risks and it explains the position of the Canary Islands in the Spanish statistics of ischemic cardiopathy mortality. The use of these calibrated risk charts would be helpful to intensify the prevention of cardiovascular diseases.