Oral anticoagulation in heart failure complicated by atrial fibrillation: A nationwide routine data study

Abstract

BackgroundThis nationwide routine data analysis evaluates if oral anticoagulant (OAC) use in patients with heart failure (HF) and atrial fibrillation (AF) leads to a lower mortality and reduced readmission rate. Superiority of new oral anticoagulants (NOACs), compared to vitamin K antagonists (VKA), was analyzed for these endpoints. MethodsAnonymous data of patients with a health insurance at the Allgemeine Ortskrankenkasse and a claims record for hospitalization with the main diagnosis of HF and secondary diagnosis of AF (2017–2019) were included. A hospital stay in the previous year was an exclusion criterion. Mortality and readmission for all-cause and stroke/intracranial bleeding (ICB) were analyzed 91–365 days after the index hospitalization. Kaplan-Meier survival curves and multivariable Cox regression models were used to evaluate the impact of medication on outcome. Results180,316 cases were included [81 years (IQR 76–86), 55.6% female, CHA2DS2-VASc score ≥ 2 (96.81%)]. In 80.6%, OACs were prescribed (VKA: 21.7%; direct factor Xa inhibitors (FXaI): 60.0%; direct thrombin inhibitors (DTI): 3.4%; with multiple prescriptions per patient included). Mortality rate was 19.1%, readmission rate was 29.9% and stroke/ICB occurred in 1.9%. Risk of death was lower with any OAC (HR 0.77, 95% CI [0.75–0.79]) but without significant differences in OAC type (VKA: HR 0.73, [0.71–0.76]; FXaI: HR 0.77, [0.75–0.78]; DTI: HR 0.71, [0.66–0.77]). The total readmission rate (HR 0.97, [0.94 to 0.99]) and readmission for stroke/ICB (HR 0.71, [0.65–0.77]) was lower with OAC. ConclusionsNationwide data confirm a reduction in mortality and readmission rate in HF-AF patients taking OACs, without NOAC superiority.