Vericiguat in patients with atrial fibrillation and heart failure with reduced ejection fraction: insights from the VICTORIA trial.

AIMS: We evaluated the relation between baseline and new-onset atrial fibrillation (AF) and outcomes, and assessed whether vericiguat modified the likelihood of new-onset AF in patients with worsening heart failure (HF) with reduced ejection fraction in VICTORIA. METHODS AND RESULTS: Of 5050 patients randomized, 5010 with recorded AF status at baseline were analysed. Patients were classified into three groups: no known AF (n = 2661, 53%), history of AF alone (n = 992, 20%), and AF on randomization electrocardiogram (n = 1357, 27%). Compared with those with no AF, those with history of AF alone had a higher risk of cardiovascular death [adjusted hazard ratio (HR) 1.21, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.01-1.47] without excess myocardial infarction or stroke; neither type of AF was associated with a higher risk of the primary composite outcome (time to cardiovascular death or first HF hospitalization), HF hospitalizations, or all cause-death. The beneficial effect of vericiguat on the primary composite outcome and its components was evident irrespective of AF status at baseline. Over a median follow-up of 10.8 months, new-onset AF occurred in 6.1% of those with no AF and 18.3% with history of AF alone (P < 0.0001). These events were not influenced by vericiguat treatment (adjusted HR 0.93, 95% CI 0.75-1.16; P = 0.51), but were associated with an increase in the hazard of both primary and secondary outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Atrial fibrillation was present in nearly half of this high-risk population with worsening HF. A history of AF alone at baseline portends an increased risk of cardiovascular death. Neither type of AF affected the beneficial effect of vericiguat. Development of AF post-randomization was associated with an increase in both cardiovascular death and HF hospitalization which was not influenced by vericiguat.

Comparison of Platelet Function Guided Versus Unguided Treatment With P2Y12 Inhibitors in Patients With Acute Myocardial Infarction (from the Hungarian Myocardial Infarction Registry).

Evidence is conflicting regarding the clinical benefits of selecting P2Y12 inhibitors based on platelet function testing (PFT). Between March 1, 2013 and March 1, 2014, we collected clinical characteristics and platelet function data in a nationwide acute myocardial infarction (AMI) registry from 15 interventional cardiology centers in Hungary. The risk of all-cause mortality at 1 year were compared after propensity score (PS) matching between patients receiving PFT-guided and unguided P2Y12-inhibitor therapies. High platelet reactivity on clopidogrel (HPRoC) was uniformly defined with the Multiplate assay. A total of 5,583 patients with AMI and coronary intervention were registered. After exclusion of cases with contraindication to prasugrel, propensity matching resulted in a sample of 2,104 patients with well-adjusted characteristics. Clopidogrel was the dominant P2Y12 inhibitor in both groups (unguided: 96% vs PFT guided: 85%, p <0.001). In the PFT-guided group, 19% of patients had HPRoC and 77% of them were switched to prasugrel. According to the adjusted analysis, all-cause mortality at 1 year was significantly lower in the PFT-guided compared with the unguided group (hazard ratio 0.57 [95% confidence interval 0.43 to 0.77], p <0.001). Although prasugrel treatment was not associated with lower all-cause mortality in the overall cohort, patients with HPRoC who switched to prasugrel had significantly lower mortality when compared with those continuing clopidogrel (hazard ratio 0.33 [95% confidence interval 0.12 to 0.92], p <0.05). In conclusion, in patients with AMI, PFT-guided treatment with a high rate of switchover to prasugrel was associated with a lower risk of mortality. Prasugrel was a predictor of lower mortality in patients with HPRoC but not in the overall cohort of AMI.