Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

Shorter Dual Antiplatelet Therapy for Older Adults After Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis

Author/s: 
Dae Yong Park, Jiun-Ruey Hu, Yasser Jamil, Michelle D Kelsey, W Schuyler Jones, Jennifer Frampton, Ajar Kochar, Wilbert S Aronow, Abdulla A Damluji, Michael G Nanna

Importance: The optimal duration of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) for older adults after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is uncertain because they are simultaneously at higher risk for both ischemic and bleeding events.

Objective: To investigate the association of abbreviated DAPT with adverse clinical events among older adults after PCI.

Data sources: The Cochrane Library, Google Scholar, Embase, MEDLINE, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science were searched from inception to August 9, 2023.

Study selection: Randomized clinical trials comparing any 2 of 1, 3, 6, and 12 months of DAPT were included if they reported results for adults aged 65 years or older or 75 years or older.

Data extraction and synthesis: The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) reporting guideline was used to abstract data and assess data quality. Risk ratios for each duration of DAPT were calculated with alternation of the reference group.

Main outcomes and measures: The primary outcome of interest was net adverse clinical events (NACE). Secondary outcomes were major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) and bleeding.

Results: In 14 randomized clinical trials comprising 19 102 older adults, no differences were observed in the risks of NACE or MACE for 1, 3, 6, and 12 months of DAPT. However, 3 months of DAPT was associated with a lower risk of bleeding compared with 6 months of DAPT (relative risk [RR], 0.50 [95% CI, 0.29-0.84]) and 12 months of DAPT (RR, 0.57 [95% CI, 0.45-0.71]) among older adults. One month of DAPT was also associated with a lower risk of bleeding compared with 6 months of DAPT (RR, 0.68 [95% CI, 0.54-0.86]).

Conclusions and relevance: In this systematic review and meta-analysis of different durations of DAPT for older adults after PCI, an abbreviated DAPT duration was associated with a lower risk of bleeding without any concomitant increase in the risk of MACE or NACE despite the concern for higher-risk coronary anatomy and comorbidities among older adults. This study, which represents the first network meta-analysis of this shortened treatment for older adults, suggests that clinicians may consider abbreviating DAPT for older adults.

Meta-Analysis of Oral Anticoagulant Monotherapy as an Antithrombotic Strategy in Patients With Stable Coronary Artery Disease and Nonvalvular Atrial Fibrillation

Author/s: 
Lee, SR, Rhee, TM, Kang, DY, Choi, EK, Oh, S, Lip, GYH

Guidelines recommend oral anticoagulant (OAC) monotherapy without antiplatelet therapy (APT) in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (AF) with stable coronary artery disease (CAD) of >1 year after myocardial infarction or percutaneous coronary intervention. More evidences are required for the safety and efficacy of OAC monotherapy compared with OAC plus APT. PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews were systematically searched up to February 2019. Nonrandomized studies and randomized clinical trials comparing OAC monotherapy with OAC plus single APT (SAPT) for patients with stable CAD and nonvalvular AF. The primary end point was major adverse cardiovascular events (composite of ischemic or thrombotic events) and secondary outcomes included major bleeding, stroke, all-cause death, and net adverse events (composite of ischemic, thrombotic, or bleeding events). From 6 trials, 8,855 patients were included. There was no significant difference in major adverse cardiovascular event in patients with AF treated using OAC plus SAPT compared with those treated with OAC monotherapy (hazard ratio [HR] 1.09; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.92 to 1.29). OAC plus SAPT was associated with a significantly higher risk of major bleeding compared with OAC monotherapy (HR 1.61; 95% CI 1.38 to 1.87), as well as in terms of net adverse event (HR 1.21; 95% CI 1.02 to 1.43). There were no significant differences in rates of stroke and all-cause death. In conclusion, in this meta-analysis, OAC monotherapy and OAC plus SAPT treatment showed similar effectiveness, but OAC monotherapy was significantly associated with a lower risk of bleeding compared with OAC plus SAPT in patients with nonvalvular AF and stable CAD.

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