The prognostic impact of left ventricular thrombus resolution after acute coronary syndrome and risk modulation via antithrombotic treatment strategies

BACKGROUND: Left ventricular thrombus (LVT) is a rare but dreaded complication during the acute phase of acute coronary syndrome (ACS). However, profound data on long-term outcome and associated antithrombotic treatment strategies of this highly vulnerable patient population are scarce in current literature. METHODS: Patients presenting with ACS were screened for presence of LVT and subsequently included within a prospective clinical registry. All-cause mortality and the composite of major adverse cardiac events (MACE) and thromboembolic events were defined as primary and secondary endpoint. RESULTS: Within 43 patients presenting with LVT, thrombus resolution during patient follow-up was observed in 27 individuals (62.8%). Patients that reached a resolution of LVT experienced lower incidence rates of death (-23.9%; p = .022), MACE (-37.8%; p = .005), and thromboembolic events (-35.2%; p = .008). Even after adjustment for clinical variables, thrombus resolution showed an independent inverse association with all-cause death with a hazard ratio (HR) of 0.14 (95% CI: 0.03-0.75; p = .021) and as well with MACE with a HR of 0.22 (95% CI: 0.07-0.68; p = .008) and thromboembolic events with a HR of 0.22 (95% CI: 0.06-0.75; p = .015). Triple antithrombotic therapy (TAT) with ticagrelor/prasugrel showed a strong and independent association with thrombus resolution with an adjusted HR of 3.25 (95% CI: 1.22-8.68; p = .019) compared to other strategies. CONCLUSION: The presented data indicate a poor outcome of ACS patients experiencing LVT. In terms of a personalized risk stratification, thrombus resolution has a strong protective impact on both all-cause death and MACE with the potential to tailor treatment decisions-including an intensified antithrombotic treatment approach-in this patient population.