Clinical outcomes after discontinuing anticoagulant therapy in patients with first unprovoked venous thromboembolism.

J Thromb Haemost

Chair for the Study of Thromboembolic Disease, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad Católica San Antonio de Murcia, Murcia, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red (CIBER), Enfermedades Respiratorias (CIBERES), Madrid, Spain.

Published: August 2024

AI Article Synopsis

  • The study focused on the balance between the risks of recurring venous thromboembolism (VTE) and major bleeding in patients stopping anticoagulation after their first unprovoked VTE.
  • It analyzed data from two registries, revealing that while recurrent VTEs were common, their case-fatality rates (CFRs) were low compared to the high CFR for major bleeding (24%).
  • Certain clinical factors, like initial presentation and age, were identified as predictors for recurrence of pulmonary embolism and major bleeding, allowing for the development of prognostic scores.

Article Abstract

Background: The duration of anticoagulation for a first episode of unprovoked venous thromboembolism (VTE) should balance the likelihood of VTE recurrence against the risk of major bleeding.

Objectives: Analyze rates and case-fatality rates (CFRs) of recurrent VTE and major bleeding after discontinuing anticoagulation in patients with a first unprovoked VTE after at least 3 months of anticoagulation.

Methods: We compared the rates and CFRs in patients of the Registro Informatizado Enfermedad Trombo Embólica (RIETE) and Contemporary management and outcomes in patients with venous thromboembolism registries. We used logistic regression models to identify predictors for recurrent pulmonary embolism (PE) and major bleeding.

Results: Of 8261 patients with unprovoked VTE in RIETE registry, 4012 (48.6%) had isolated deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and 4250 had PE. Follow-up (median, 318 days) showed 543 recurrent DVTs, 540 recurrent PEs, 71 major bleeding episodes, and 447 deaths. The Contemporary management and outcomes in patients with venous thromboembolism registry yielded similar results. Corresponding CFRs of recurrent DVT, PE, and major bleeding were 0.4%, 4.6%, and 24%, respectively. On multivariable analyses, initial PE presentation (hazard ratio [HR], 3.03; 95% CI, 2.49-3.69), dementia (HR, 1.47; 95% CI, 1.01-2.13), and anemia (HR, 0.72; 95% CI, 0.57-0.91) predicted recurrent PE, whereas older age (HR, 2.11; 95% CI, 1.15-3.87), inflammatory bowel disease (HR, 4.39; 95% CI, 1.00-19.3), and anemia (HR, 2.24; 95% CI, 1.35-3.73) predicted major bleeding. Prognostic scores were formulated, with C statistics of 0.63 for recurrent PE and 0.69 for major bleeding.

Conclusion: Recurrent DVT and PE were frequent but had low CFRs (0.4% and 4.6%, respectively) after discontinuing anticoagulation. On the contrary, major bleeding was rare but had high CFR (24%). A few clinical factors may predict these outcomes.

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Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jtha.2024.05.007DOI Listing

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