Controversy exists regarding whether all patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) benefit from angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs). We examined the association between ACEI ...treatment and mortality in a large, unselected population of patients with AMI. The present study included 105,224 patients with AMI who were not treated with ACEIs on admission. A logistic regression analysis, including 33 variables, calculated a propensity score for each patient to estimate the probability of receiving ACEIs at discharge, given the background. The association between ACEI treatment at discharge and the 1-year outcome was evaluated in prespecified subgroups using the Cox regression analyses, adjusting for the propensity score and medications at discharge. A total of 38,395 patients (36.5%) received ACEIs at discharge. After adjustment, ACEI treatment was associated with a 24% reduction in mortality (relative risk 0.76, 95% confidence interval 0.73 to 0.80). The benefit was largest in patients with a history or present signs of heart failure. In patients without heart failure, a significant benefit of ACEI treatment was seen only in patients with renal dysfunction (relative risk 0.69, 95% confidence interval 0.54 to 0.88). In the whole group, the risk of AMI decreased by 7% (relative risk 0.93, 95% confidence interval 0.90 to 0.96), with a larger effect seen in patients with ST-segment elevation AMI or systolic left ventricular dysfunction. In conclusion, in unselected patients with AMI, ACEI treatment was associated with a reduction in 1-year mortality, mainly in patients with heart failure or renal dysfunction, and a small reduction in the risk of reinfarction, mainly in patients with ST-segment elevation AMI or systolic left ventricular dysfunction.
Background We sought to assess the occurrence of events after blinded study drug discontinuation and transition to open-label vitamin K antagonist (VKA) in ARISTOTLE. Methods At the end of ARISTOTLE, ...blinded study drug was stopped, and open-label VKA was recommended. For patients completing the trial on blinded study drug, a 2-day bridging period with apixaban or apixaban placebo was recommended (while beginning open-label VKA). Outcomes were assessed during the 30 days after stopping blinded study drug. Results Of the 6,809 patients in the apixaban group and 6,588 in the warfarin group who completed the trial on study drug, there were 21 strokes or systemic emboli (4.02%/year) and 26 major bleeding (4.97%/year) events in the apixaban group (transitioning to VKA) and 5 strokes or systemic emboli (0.99%/year) and 10 major bleeding (1.97%/year) events in the warfarin group (continuing on VKA), with most of the imbalance between groups being after the first week. Similar results were seen in the first 30 days of the trial where warfarin-naive patients starting warfarin had a higher rate of stroke or systemic emboli (5.41%/year) than warfarin-experienced patients (1.42%/year), a pattern not seen when starting apixaban. No similar increase in events with apixaban versus warfarin was seen during temporary or permanent study drug discontinuation during the trial. Conclusions The excess in thrombotic and bleeding events in the apixaban group after study drug discontinuation appears to be related to an increased risk associated with the initiation of a VKA rather than a direct effect of apixaban. Whether ≥2 days of apixaban bridging improves outcomes during VKA transition is unknown and deserves further evaluation.
Background The aim was to examine whether the Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) or the Cockcroft-Gault (CG) formula is better at predicting prognosis in myocardial infarction (MI) ...patients. Methods All consecutive MI patients entered in a nationwide registry between 2003 and 2006 with glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) estimated by both the MDRD and CG formula (N = 36,137) were analyzed. Results Cockcroft-Gault classified a larger proportion of patients as having at least a moderate (39.8% vs 31.1%, P < .001) or at least a severe renal dysfunction (7.6% vs 4.4%, P < .001) compared with the MDRD. The largest difference between the estimations was seen when patients were divided according to gender, age, and weight, where CG estimated a lower eGFR in women, the elderly, and those with low body weight. In a receiver operating characteristic analysis, CG had a stronger association to 1-year mortality (area under the curve 0.78, 95% CI 0.77-0.79) than MDRD (area under the curve 0.73, 95% CI 0.72-0.74). Within each renal function stage classified with the MDRD, there were patients identified with the CG as having both a worse renal function and a higher mortality. After multivariable adjustment, CG predicted 1-year mortality better than the MDRD (renal failure vs normal renal function: hazard ratio 3.00, 95% CI 2.42-3.71 with the CG; hazard ratio 2.56, 95% CI 2.10-3.11 with the MDRD). Conclusion Cockcroft-Gault is better than the MDRD equation at predicting mortality after a MI. This is mainly explained by differences in the coefficients and variables included in the eGFR equations, and less to differences in various subgroups of patients.
Background The Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events (GRACE) risk score is widely recommended for risk assessment in patients with acute coronary syndrome. However, there is limited knowledge ...regarding the utility of this score for long-term risk prediction in unselected patients with acute chest pain and whether it might be improved by the integration of nonnecrosis biomarkers. Methods We calculated the GRACE risk score in 453 chest pain patients and assessed its value for risk assessment together with the additive prognostic information obtained from N-terminal pro–B-type natriuretic peptide, C-reactive protein, growth differentiation factor–15 (GDF-15), and cystatin C. Results After a median follow-up of 5.8 years, 92 patients (20.7%) had died. The GRACE risk score was significantly higher in patients who died (median 146 vs 93, P < .001) and provided a c-statistic regarding mortality of 0.78. A significant increase of the c-statistic was achieved only after addition of GDF-15 (c-statistic 0.81, P = .003) and, to a minor extent, after addition of cystatin C (c-statistic 0.81, P = .035). Assessment of the integrated discriminative improvement yielded similar results. N-terminal pro–B-type natriuretic peptide had only limited incremental prognostic value, and C-reactive protein was not predictive for outcome. Conclusion The GRACE risk score allows for the prediction of mortality in chest pain patients even after almost 6 years of follow-up. However, its predictive value could be further enhanced by the addition of selected nonnecrosis biomarkers, in particular GDF-15 or cystatin C.
Background A routine invasive (RI) strategy in non–ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndromes (NSTE ACS) has been associated with better outcome compared with a selective invasive (SI) strategy in ...men, but results in women have yielded disparate results. The aim of this study was to assess gender differences in long-term outcome with an SI compared with an RI strategy in NSTE ACS. Methods Individual patient data were obtained from the FRISC II trial, ICTUS trial, and RITA 3 trial for a collaborative meta-analysis. Results Men treated with an RI strategy had significantly lower rate of the primary outcome 5-year cardiovascular (CV) death/myocardial infarction (MI) compared with men treated with an SI strategy (15.6% vs 19.8%, P = .001); risk-adjusted hazards ratio (HR) 0.73 (95% CI 0.63-0.86). In contrast, there was little impact of an RI compared with an SI strategy on the primary outcome among women (16.5% vs 15.1%, P = .324); risk-adjusted HR 1.13 (95% CI 0.89-1.43), interaction P = .01. For the individual components of the primary outcome, a similar pattern was seen with lower rate of MI (adjusted HR 0.69, 95% CI 0.57-0.83) and CV death (adjusted HR 0.71, 95% CI 0.56-0.89) in men but without obvious difference in women in MI (adjusted HR 1.13, 95% CI 0.85-1.50) or CV death (adjusted HR 0.97, 95% CI 0.68-1.39). Conclusions In this meta-analysis comparing an SI and RI strategy, benefit from an RI strategy during long-term follow-up was confirmed in men. Conversely, in women, there was no evidence of benefit.
Background Clinical outcomes and the effects of oral anticoagulants among patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and either a history of or acute heart failure (HF) are largely unknown. We aimed ...to assess the relationship between prior HF or acute HF complicating an index ACS event and subsequent clinical outcomes and the efficacy and safety of apixaban compared with placebo in these populations. Methods High-risk patients were randomly assigned post-ACS to apixaban 5.0 mg or placebo twice daily. Median follow-up was 8 (4-12) months. The primary outcome was cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke. The main safety outcome was thrombolysis in myocardial infarction major bleeding. Results Heart failure was reported in 2,995 patients (41%), either as prior HF (2,076 28%) or acute HF (2,028 27%). Patients with HF had a very high baseline risk and were more often managed medically. Heart failure was associated with a higher rate of the primary outcome (prior HF: adjusted hazard ratio HR 1.73, 95% CI 1.42-2.10, P < .0001, acute HF: adjusted HR 1.65, 95% CI 1.35-2.01, P < .0001) and cardiovascular death (prior HF: HR 2.54, 95% CI 1.82-3.54, acute HF: adjusted HR 2.52, 95% CI 1.82-3.50). Patients with acute HF also had significantly higher rates of thrombolysis in myocardial infarction major bleeding (prior HF: adjusted HR 1.22, 95% CI 0.65-2.27, P = .54, acute HF: adjusted HR 1.78, 95% CI 1.03-3.08, P = .04). There was no statistical evidence of a differential effect of apixaban on clinical events or bleeding in patients with or without prior HF; however, among patients with acute HF, there were numerically fewer events with apixaban than placebo (14.8 vs 19.3, HR 0.76, 95% CI 0.57-1.01, interaction P = .13), a trend that was not seen in patients with prior HF or no HF. Conclusions In high-risk patients post-ACS, both prior and acute HFs are associated with an increased risk of subsequent clinical events. Apixaban did not significantly reduce clinical events and increased bleeding in patients with and without HF; however, there was a tendency toward fewer clinical events with apixaban in patients with acute HF.
Abstract Background The Bleeding Academic Research Consortium (BARC) scale has been proposed to standardize bleeding endpoint definitions and reporting in cardiovascular trials. Validation in large ...cohorts of patients is needed. Objectives This study sought to investigate the relationship between BARC-classified bleeding and mortality and compared its prognostic value against 2 validated bleeding scales: TIMI (Thrombolysis In Myocardial Infarction) and GUSTO (Global Use of Strategies to Open Occluded Arteries). Methods We analyzed bleeding in 12,944 patients with acute coronary syndromes without ST-segment elevation, with or without early invasive strategy. The main outcome measure was all-cause death. Results During follow-up (median: 502 days), noncoronary artery bypass graft (CABG) bleeding occurred in 1,998 (15.4%) patients according to BARC (grades 2, 3, or 5), 484 (3.7%) patients according to TIMI minor/major, and 514 (4.0%) patients according to GUSTO moderate/severe criteria. CABG-related bleeding (BARC 4) occurred in 155 (1.2%) patients. Patients with BARC (2, 3, or 4) bleeding had a significant increase in risk of death versus patients without bleeding (BARC 0 or 1); the hazard was highest in the 30 days after bleeding (hazard ratio: 7.35; 95% confidence interval: 5.59 to 9.68; p < 0.0001) and remained significant up to 1 year. The hazard of mortality increased progressively with non-CABG BARC grades. BARC 4 bleeds were significantly associated with mortality within 30 days (hazard ratio: 10.05; 95% confidence interval: 5.41 to 18.69; p < 0.0001), but not thereafter. Inclusion of BARC (2, 3, or 4) bleeding in the 1-year mortality model with baseline characteristics improved it to an extent comparable to TIMI minor/major and GUSTO moderate/severe bleeding. Conclusions In patients with acute coronary syndromes without ST-segment elevation, bleeding assessed with the BARC scale was significantly associated with risk of subsequent death up to 1 year after the event and risk of mortality increased gradually with higher BARC grades. Our results support adoption of the BARC bleeding scale in ACS clinical trials. (Trial to Assess the Effects of Vorapaxar SCH 530348; MK-5348 in Preventing Heart Attack and Stroke in Participants With Acute Coronary Syndrome TRACER Study P04736; NCT00527943 )
Objectives The PLATO (Platelet Inhibition and Patient Outcomes) angiographic substudy sought to compare the efficacy of ticagrelor versus clopidogrel with respect to angiographic outcomes before and ...after PCI in the setting of acute coronary syndrome. Background Greater platelet inhibition has been associated with improved angiographic outcomes before and after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Therefore, it was hypothesized that treatment with ticagrelor, which achieves more rapid, higher, and more consistent platelet inhibition, would be associated with improved angiographic outcomes when compared with those of clopidogrel treatment. Methods The angiographic cohort consists of 2,616 patients drawn from the 18,624-patient PLATO trial. Clopidogrel naïve or pre-treated patients were randomized to 180 mg of ticagrelor or 300 mg of clopidogrel (75 mg for clopidogrel pre-treated patients). PCI patients were administered, as per treatment group: 1) an additional 90 mg of ticagrelor if >24 h following the initial loading dose; or 2) an optional further 300 mg of clopidogrel or placebo (total 600 mg) prior to PCI. The substudy primary endpoint was the incidence of post-PCI TIMI (Thrombolysis In Myocardial Infarction) myocardial perfusion grade 3 (TMPG 3) among patients who received a study drug prior to PCI. Results In total, 21.3% of patients were pretreated with clopidogrel prior to randomization. There was a short time interval between randomization and PCI (median: 0.68 interquartile range (IQR): 0.30 to 2.21 h) among all patients. Post-PCI TMPG 3 was similar between the ticagrelor and clopidogrel groups (47.1% vs. 46.9%; p = 0.96). Likewise, the following pre-PCI outcomes were similar in the ticagrelor and clopidogrel groups, respectively: TMPG 3 (30.5% vs. 31.2%), TIMI flow grade 3 (37.1% vs. 39.3%), corrected TIMI frame count (median: 100 vs. 71 frames), TIMI thrombus grade 0 (24.1% vs. 27.6%), minimum lumen diameter (median: 0.3 IQR: 0.0 to 0.6 vs. 0.3 IQR: 0.0 to 0.6 mm) and percentage of diameter stenosis (median: 89 IQR: 78 to 100 vs. 89 IQR: 77 to 100). Conclusions Neither coronary flow nor myocardial perfusion, evaluated on coronary angiograms performed before or following PCI procedures within a few hours after the start of oral antiplatelet treatment in the setting of acute coronary syndromes, demonstrated a difference with ticagrelor versus clopidogrel. (A Comparison of Ticagrelor AZD6140 and Clopidogrel in Patients With Acute Coronary Syndrome PLATO; NCT00391872 )
Background Non–ST-segment myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) can be complicated by high-degree atrioventricular (AV) block, asystole, or electromechanical dissociation (EMD), but these events are not ...well characterized in the contemporary era. This analysis assesses the incidence of and factors associated with these dysrhythmias in acute NSTEMIs. Methods Patients with NSTEMI in the EARLY ACS, PLATO, and TRACER trials were included in the pooled cohort (N = 29,677). Logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with in-hospital high-degree AV block and asystole or EMD, and Kaplan-Meier methods were used to assess mortality. Results High-degree AV block occurred in 112 (0.4%) patients, asystole in 157 (0.5%), and EMD in 38 (0.1%). Pacemakers were inserted in 241 patients (0.8%) during the index hospitalization: 30 (12%) for AV block. Among patients with high-degree AV block, we observed more frequent right coronary artery lesions (47% vs 29%). Age, diabetes, lower heart rate, and lower blood pressure were associated with high-degree AV block. Higher Killip class, ST-segment depression, prior myocardial infarction, and peripheral vascular disease were most strongly associated with asystole or EMD. Ten-day unadjusted survival was 90% for patients with high-degree AV block and 43% for those with asystole or EMD. Conclusions Although high-degree AV block, asystole, and EMD were infrequent complications of NSTEMI, they were associated with substantial short-term mortality. Only 1 in 8 pacemakers placed in NSTEMI patients during the acute hospitalization was for high-degree AV block.
Objective Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) trials typically use a composite primary outcome (myocardial infarction MI, stroke, or cardiovascular death), but differential patient characteristics, timing, ...and consequences associated with individual component end points as first events have not been well studied. We compared patient characteristics and prognostic significance associated with first cardiovascular events in the post-ACS setting for initially stabilized patients. Methods We combined patient-level data from 4 trials of post-ACS antithrombotic therapies (PLATO, APPRAISE-2, TRACER, and TRILOGY ACS) to characterize the timing of and characteristics associated with first cardiovascular events (MI, stroke, or cardiovascular death). Landmark analysis at 7 days after index ACS presentation was used to focus on spontaneous, postdischarge events that were not confounded by in-hospital procedural complications. Using a competing risk framework, we tested for differential associations between prespecified covariates and the occurrence of nonfatal stroke vs MI as the first event, and we examined subsequent events after the first nonfatal event. Results Among 46,694 patients with a median follow-up of 358 (25th, 75th percentiles 262, 486) days, a first ischemic event occurred in 4,307 patients (9.2%) as follows: MI in 5.8% (n = 2,690), stroke in 1.0% (n = 477), and cardiovascular death in 2.4% (n = 1,140). Older age, prior stroke/transient ischemic attack, prior atrial fibrillation, and higher diastolic blood pressure were associated with a significantly greater risk of stroke vs MI, whereas prior percutaneous coronary intervention was associated with a greater risk of MI vs stroke. Second events occurred in 32% of those with a first nonfatal stroke at a median of 13 (3, 59) days after the first event and in 32% of those with a first nonfatal MI at a median of 35 (5, 137) days after the first event. The most common second event was a recurrent MI among those with MI as the first event and cardiovascular death among those with stroke as the first event. Conclusions Approximately 9% of patients experienced a first cardiovascular event in the post-ACS setting during a median follow-up of 1 year. Although the profile and prognostic implications of stroke vs MI as the first nonfatal event differ substantially, approximately one-third of these patients experienced a second event, typically soon after the first event. These findings have implications for improving post-ACS care and influencing the design of future cardiovascular trials.
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