Why the study?
Patients with nvAF who experience a cardioembolic event despite adequate OAC have a high risk of recurrence, requiring further prevention strategies like off-label LAAC.
Does left atrial appendage closure reduce the composite of cardioembolic events, major bleeding, or procedure-related major complications compared to continued DOAC therapy in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation who experienced a cardioembolic event despite adequate oral anticoagulation?
Comparison
LAAC vs continued DOAC therapy
Design
Retrospective two-center cohort study with propensity-score matching
Follow-up
Median 3.4 years
Key result
Left atrial appendage closure improved primary endpoint-free survival compared to DOACs in nvAF patients with prior cardioembolic events (HR 0.28; 95% CI 0.08-0.97; P=0.044).
Authors
Loading...
Off-label LAAC in OAC-failure nvAF warrants caution; leaves open efficacy questions pending randomized trials.
Cohort (n=75)
Yes
Does left atrial appendage closure reduce the composite of cardioembolic events, major bleeding, or procedure-related major complications compared to continued DOAC therapy in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation who experienced a cardioembolic event despite adequate oral anticoagulation?
Hazard Ratio: 0.28 (95% CI 0.08–0.97)
p-value: p=0.044
Left atrial appendage closure may be a safe and effective strategy to improve event-free survival in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation who experience a cardioembolic event despite adequate oral anticoagulation.
Falasconi et al. (2021) conducted a cohort in Non-valvular atrial fibrillation (nvAF) (n=75). Left atrial appendage closure (LAAC) vs. DOAC therapy was evaluated on Composite of CE event, major bleeding, or procedure-related major complication (HR 0.28, 95% CI 0.08-0.97, p=0.044). Left atrial appendage closure improved primary endpoint-free survival compared to DOACs in nvAF patients with prior cardioembolic events (HR 0.28; 95% CI 0.08-0.97; P=0.044).
Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context: