Economic evaluation of prescribing conventional and newer oral anticoagulants in older adults

Clinical, economic, and humanistic impact of a multidisciplinary medication review with follow-up for anticoagulated patients treated with vitamin K antagonists in primary care: A cluster randomised controlled trial

BACKGROUND

Interdisciplinary collaboration between general practitioner, nurses and pharmacists can favour the control of patients treated with vitamin K antagonists (VKA), increasing their safety and effectiveness. The aim of the study was to evaluate the impact of pharmaceutical interventions on patients treated with VKA within the framework of a Pharmacotherapeutic Follow-up service on clinical, economic and humanistic outcomes.

METHODS

Controlled and randomized study in patients from two health areas of Zaragoza in treatment with VKA with Time in Therapeutic Range (TTR) according to the Rosendaal method less than 70% in the last 6 months. Patients were recruited at the pharmacy and assigned to two groups: control and intervention. A Pharmacotherapeutic Follow-up Program was established for the intervention group for 6 months. The outcome variables were INR stability, pharmacological adherence, vitamin K intake, knowledge about the use of acenocoumarol, quality of life, satisfaction with treatment, associated costs and avoided costs. A descriptive analysis was performed, and the Students' T test or Mann-Whitney U test was used for the association between quantitative variables and Chi-square or Fisher's test for qualitative variables.

RESULTS

A total of 123 patients were included, 65 in the intervention group (IG) and 58 in the control group (CG). A total of 108 interventions were conducted (1.7 interventions/patient) and the most common were those related to the proper taking of medications (41.0%). In IG, TTR (p = 0.019), adherence to treatment (p = 0.038) and knowledge about acenocoumarol (p = 0.031) improved, compared to CG. A higher proportion of patients in IG achieved a TTR>65% (p = 0.024). In addition, patients whose interventions were accepted by the physician (p = 0.027) and those who received vitamin K optimization interventions (p = 0.003) achieved TTR>65% in greater proportion.

CONCLUSIONS

Community pharmacist medication review, in collaboration with general practitioners improve knowledge and adherence of patients treated with oral anti-vitamin K agents and enhances the achievement of their therapeutic INR ranges. Investment needed to achieve this clinical impact is low and patient satisfaction is high.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

This study has been registered with Clinical Trials.gov dated 25/05/2017: NCT03154489.

The continuation of oral anticoagulation and antiplatelet therapy for dento-alveolar surgery: a service evaluation

Background Patients taking oral anticoagulants (OACs) and oral antiplatelets (OAPs) have a risk of post-operative bleeding when dental extractions are required. Guidance exists to assist dental practitioners on how best to clinically manage these patients, but this is based upon low-quality evidence. The current service evaluation provides real world clinical data when these drugs are not discontinued for oral surgery procedures.Materials and methods All OACs and OAPs were continued and patients requiring dental extractions had local haemostatic measures (local anaesthesia with adrenaline, socket packing with haemostat and resorbable sutures). All patients were offered a follow-up via a telephone clinic service after surgery to assess any post-operative bleeding.Results A total of 439 patients underwent 513 surgical episodes, equating to 1,001 dental extractions. Overall, 412 (95.9%) patients reported no post-operative bleeding complications. A total of 18 (4.1%) patients reported post-operative bleeding requiring further intervention. All but two patients were managed with local haemostatic measures, and no patient required hospital admission. For the single novel OAC cohort of patients, 8/185 (4.3%) procedures had post-operative bleeding.Conclusion This current service evaluation highlights that the risk of significant or life-threatening bleeding following dental extraction when OACs or OAPs are continued remains rare.

Potentially inappropriate medication among older patients with diabetic kidney disease

Objective: Potentially inappropriate medications (PIM) contribute to poor outcomes in older patients, making it a widespread health problem. The study explored the occurrence and risk factors of PIM in older diabetic kidney disease (DKD) patients during hospitalization and investigated whether polypharmacy was associated with it. Methods: Retrospective analysis of the patients ≥ 65 years old diagnosed with DKD from July to December 2020; the PIM was evaluated according to the American Beers Criteria (2019). Factors with statistical significance in univariate analysis were included in Logistic multivariate analysis to explore the potential risk factors related to PIM. Results: Included 186 patients, 65.6% of patients had PIM, and 300 items were confirmed. The highest incidence of PIM was 41.7% for drugs that should be carefully used by the older, followed by 35.3% that should be avoided during hospitalization. The incidence of PIM related to diseases or symptoms, drug interactions to avoid, and drugs to avoid or reduce dose for renal insufficiency patients were 6.3%, 4.0% and 12.7%, respectively. The medications with a high incidence of PIM were diuretics (35.0%), benzodiazepines (10.7%) and peripheral ɑ1 blockers (8.7%). Compared with hospitalization, there were 26% of patients had increased PIM at discharge. Multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that polypharmacy during hospitalization was an independent risk factor for PIM, OR = 4.471 (95% CI: 2.378, 8.406). Conclusion: The incidence of PIM in hospitalized older DKD patients is high; we should pay more attention to the problem of polypharmacy in these patients. Pharmacists identifying the subtypes and risk factors for PIM may facilitate risk reduction for older DKD patients.

Prescribing trends of oral anticoagulants in England over the last decade: a focus on new and old drugs and adverse events reporting

Direct-acting oral anticoagulants (DOACs) are replacing conventional VKA (vitamin K antagonist, i.e., warfarin) for various indications where a therapeutic anticoagulant effect is desired. We evaluated the prescribing patterns of the DOACs and warfarin, cost implications of the increasing DOACs prescribing, and deduce the reporting of serious and fatal events, during 2009–2019 in primary care England. Prescriptions and fatal or serious adverse events reporting data, between 2009 and 2019 were analysed, using linear regression to examine the trends in prescriptions, costs, and serious and fatal events reporting. We also compared the prescribing trends of four direct-acting oral anticoagulants and warfarin, normalised to per 1000 clinical commissioning group (CCG) patient population for the year 2019 to better understand the regional differences in DOACs prescribing. The overall use of any DOACs (as a proportion of total anticoagulants) increased from 16% in 2015 to 62% in 2019 with an average increase of 87% (95% CI 83.1, 90.5) per year. The reporting of serious and fatal events associated with DOACs decreased by 6% (95% CI 12.5, − 0.1) per year. Apixaban is by far the most prescribed with an average drug cost increasing to 156% (95% CI 140, 172) per year. In England, the lowest anticoagulant prescribing region was Greater London whereas the highest prescribing regions were Yorkshire and Humber for DOACs and the East Midlands for warfarin. Interestingly, Lancashire, Merseyside, and Cheshire showed a higher usage for warfarin over DOACs. The differing prescription patterns could be a result of changes in national guidelines and increasing population. Nevertheless, DOACs appear to make an increasing contribution to total anticoagulant prescription items and costs.