Oral anticoagulation in high risk Takotsubo syndrome: when should it be considered and when not?

Standard pharmacological therapy in Takotsubo syndrome (TTS) is still debated and there is a lack of prospective data. In their recent work in BMC Cardiovascular Disorders Abanador-Kamper et al. found that stroke in TTS has an event rate of 2.8% after 30 days and 4.2% after 12 months and they question which patients need oral anticoagulation. According to our clinical data, TTS patients with LV thrombi may be at high risk of stroke. These patients are characterized by apical ballooning pattern, high prevalence of ST-elevation and higher troponin I levels. We have recently proposed a therapeutic algorithm for oral anticoagulation in TTS. In case of apical ballooning pattern and increased admission levels of troponin-I (> 10 ng/mL), oral anticoagulation should be considered, while in case of midventricular/basal ballooning or apical ballooning associated with troponin-I levels < 10 ng/ml, oral anticoagulation should not be considered. A simple combination of echocardiographic parameters (apical ballooning pattern),ECG data (ST-elevation at admission and persistent after 72 h) and laboratory values (troponin serum levels) could be useful for an appropriate therapeutic management of oral anticoagulation in TTS.