Direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) reduce the risk of stroke more effectively than aspirin among high-risk patients who undergo radiofrequency catheter ablation (RFA) for left ventricular arrhythmia, according to new findings presented at Heart Rhythm 2021.
The authors tracked nearly 250 patients from four different facilities who received either DOACs or aspirin following a left ventricular arrhythmia-related RFA. Patients in the DOAC arm of the study experienced fewer complications (3.7% vs. 24%). Also, looking specifically at post-procedure cerebrovascular events (CVEs) such as transient ischemic attack and stroke, patients in the DOAC arm experienced a lower rate both after 24 hours (4.5% vs. 19.6%) and after 30 days (0% vs. 7.1%).
The team also reviewed MRI results looking for signs of asymptomatic CVEs. Again, the rate of such issues was considerably lower in the DOAC arm (11.2%) than the aspirin arm (25%).
“The STROKE-VT trial helps us answer a longstanding question around the best way to lower procedure-related risks for patients coming out of an ablation,” lead author Dhanunjaya R. Lakkireddy, MD, executive medical director of the Kansas City Heart Rhythm Institute, said in a statement. “Moving forward, we hope the findings encourage electrophysiologists to use anticoagulants after ablations to reduce CVEs in a patient population that is already very sick and at high-risk of stroke.”
More information on Heart Rhythm 2021, the annual meeting of the Heart Rhythm Society, is available here.
Michael has more than 16 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.