Additive effect of anemia and renal impairment on long-term outcome after percutaneous coronary intervention.

INTRODUCTION: Anemia and renal impairment are important co-morbidities among patients with coronary artery disease undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI). Disease progression to eventual death can be understood as the combined effect of baseline characteristics and intermediate outcomes. METHODS: Using data from a prospective cohort study, we investigated clinical pathways reflecting the transitions from PCI through intermediate ischemic or hemorrhagic events to all-cause mortality in a multi-state analysis as a function of anemia (hemoglobin concentration <120 g/l and <130 g/l, for women and men, respectively) and renal impairment (creatinine clearance <60 ml/min) at baseline. RESULTS: Among 6029 patients undergoing PCI, anemia and renal impairment were observed isolated or in combination in 990 (16.4%), 384 (6.4%), and 309 (5.1%) patients, respectively. The most frequent transition was from PCI to death (6.7%, 95% CI 6.1-7.3), followed by ischemic events (4.8%, 95 CI 4.3-5.4) and bleeding (3.4%, 95% CI 3.0-3.9). Among patients with both anemia and renal impairment, the risk of death was increased 4-fold as compared to the reference group (HR 3.9, 95% CI 2.9-5.4) and roughly doubled as compared to patients with either anemia (HR 1.7, 95% CI 1.3-2.2) or renal impairment (HR 2.1, 95% CI 1.5-2.9) alone. Hazard ratios indicated an increased risk of bleeding in all three groups compared to patients with neither anemia nor renal impairment. CONCLUSIONS: Applying a multi-state model we found evidence for a gradient of risk for the composite of bleeding, ischemic events, or death as a function of hemoglobin value and estimated glomerular filtration rate at baseline.

Impact of atrial fibrillation on clinical outcomes among patients with coronary artery disease undergoing revascularisation with drug-eluting stents.

AIMS: Coronary artery disease (CAD) and atrial fibrillation (AF) are major determinants of morbidity and mortality. A combined treatment with antiplatelet agents and vitamin K antagonists limits the risk of stent thrombosis and stroke while increasing the rate of bleeding. The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of atrial fibrillation (AF) on long-term clinical outcomes in patients with CAD undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with drug-eluting stents (DES). METHODS AND RESULTS: Among 6,308 consecutive patients undergoing PCI with DES between 2002 and 2009, 323 (5.3%) patients were diagnosed with AF. We compared clinical outcomes between patients with and those without AF throughout four years. The primary endpoint was a composite of all-cause mortality, myocardial infarction (MI), ischaemic stroke, and BARC bleeding type 3b/3c/5a/5b. In adjusted analyses, the primary composite endpoint was more frequent among patients with AF (HR 1.59, 95% CI 1.26-2.00; p<0.001). Differences were driven by an increased risk of all-cause mortality (HR 1.67, 95% CI 1.27-2.20; p=0.003), ischaemic stroke (HR 3.09, 95% CI 1.45-6.56; p=0.003), and intracranial bleeding (HR 4.28, 95% CI 1.36-13.48; p=0.013). We observed a gradient of risk among patients with higher CHA2DS2-VASc scores and modified outpatient bleeding risk index. CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with CAD undergoing revascularisation with DES, AF confers an increased risk of all-cause mortality, ischaemic stroke, and intracranial bleeding. The hazard imposed by AF correlates with the CHA2DS2-VASc score.

Long-term clinical and angiographic outcomes of diabetic patients after revascularization with early generation drug-eluting stents.

BACKGROUND: Early generation drug-eluting stents (DESs) reduce restenosis and repeat revascularization procedures. However, the long-term safety and efficacy of early generation DES according to diabetic status are poorly established. METHODS: A total of 1,012 patients were randomly assigned to treatment with sirolimus-eluting (n = 503) or paclitaxel-eluting stents (n = 509). Serial angiographic follow-up at baseline, 8 months, and 5 years was available in 293 patients with 382 lesions. The primary end point was a composite of major adverse cardiac events (cardiac death, myocardial infarction, and ischemia-driven target lesion revascularization). Clinical and angiographic outcomes through 5-year follow-up were compared between diabetic and nondiabetic patients. RESULTS: Major adverse cardiac events were more common among diabetic than nondiabetic patients at 5 years (25.9% vs 19.2%, hazard ratio [HR] 1.45, 95% CI 1.06-1.99, P = .02). The difference in disfavor of diabetic patients was largely determined by a higher rate of cardiac mortality (11.4% vs 4.3%, HR 2.86, 95% CI 1.69-4.84, P < .0001), whereas the risk of myocardial infarction (6.5% vs 6.8%, HR 1.00, 95% CI 0.55-1.84, P = .99) and ischemia-driven target lesion revascularization (14.4% vs 14.1%, HR 1.09, 95% CI 0.73-1.64, P = .67) was comparable. The risk of stent thrombosis was similar among diabetic and nondiabetic patients (definite or probable: 6.0% vs 4.6%, HR 1.36, 95% CI 0.71-2.67, P = .35). Among 293 patients undergoing serial angiography, very-late lumen loss amounted to 0.42 ± 0.63 mm in diabetic patients and 0.44 ± 0.68 mm in nondiabetic patients (P = .79). CONCLUSIONS: Diabetic patients remain at increased risk for mortality after revascularization with early generation DES during long-term follow-up. Conversely, diabetes is no longer associated with an increased risk of clinical and angiographic restenosis after revascularization with early generation DES.