Effectiveness and safety of rivaroxaban versus warfarin among nonvalvular atrial fibrillation patients with obesity and diabetes

AIMS: To compare clinical outcomes of rivaroxaban and warfarin in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) and concurrent obesity and diabetes. METHODS: Patients aged ≥18 years were identified from a healthcare claims database with the following criteria: newly initiating rivaroxaban or warfarin, ≥1 medical claim with a diagnosis of AF, obesity determined by validated machine learning algorithm, and ≥1 claim with a diagnosis of diabetes or for antidiabetic medication. Treatment cohorts were matched using propensity scores and were compared for stroke/systemic embolism (SE) and major bleeding using Cox proportional hazards models. RESULTS: A total of 9999 matched pairs of NVAF patients with obesity and diabetes who initiated treatment with rivaroxaban or warfarin were included. The composite risk of stroke/SE was significantly lower in the rivaroxaban cohort compared with the warfarin cohort (HR 0.82; 95% CI 0.74-0.90). Risks of ischemic and hemorrhagic strokes were also significantly reduced with rivaroxaban versus warfarin, but not SE. Major bleeding risk was similar between treatment cohorts (HR 0.92; 95% CI 0.78-1.09). CONCLUSIONS: In NVAF patients with comorbidities of obesity and diabetes, rivaroxaban was associated with lower risks of stroke/SE and similar risk of major bleeding versus warfarin.