Value of Safety of Anticoagulant Therapy in Elderly Patient with Atrial Fibrillation and High Risk of Bleeding

The review article discusses  the safety issue of anticoagulant therapy in elderly patients with atrial fibrillation and high risk of bleeding.  An evidence base is presented demonstrating the high safety of rivaroxaban in patients over 80  years of age,  with a high risk of bleeding  and cardiovascular complications,  the presence of comorbid  pathology, geriatric syndromes  and chronic kidney disease (including in combination with anemia). The problem of low adherence to treatment in elderly patients and the possibility of solving it were separately considered.

[Modern issues of improving the prognosis in patients with atrial fibrillation after ischemic stroke]

The anticoagulant therapy with a priority of direct oral anticoagulants is an approach to the prevention of recurrent stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) that has presently proved its efficacy and is stated in international clinical guidelines. An extensive evidence-based database demonstrates advantages of rivaroxaban over other drugs of this class in secondary prevention of stroke in AF. Furthermore, these advantages are combined with the optimal safety profile. The rivaroxaban treatment may provide the most favorable prognosis due to the prevention of recurrent stroke in AF, reducing the rate of kidney disease progression, and slowing vascular atherosclerosis. An important beneficial feature of rivaroxaban is once-a-day intake, which is important in the context of a high incidence of cognitive disorders in this patient category, and may improve their compliance and, thus, help achieving the expected profile of treatment efficacy. Thus, rivaroxaban can be regarded as a drug of choice for secondary prevention of stroke in AF.

[Atrial fibrillation and cognitive impairment: features of the relationship, developmental and prevention mechanisms]

The article discusses the development of cognitive deficit in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) and provides data on mechanisms of the development of cognitive disorders in AF. Under discussion are a possibility of reducing the risk of cognitive disorders with the anticoagulant therapy for prevention of stroke in AF and different properties of different anticoagulants, which may be important for patients. Thus, patients with cognitive disorders are more prone to missing the dose, which may entail serious, possibly fatal consequences. Therefore, the convenience of dosing may be essential. The drug rivaroxaban that has once-a-day dosing schedule and a calendar package, may help the patient better adhere to the doctor's recommendations. Therefore, rivaroxaban may help improving the compliance, which is the major condition for comprehensive, necessary protection of an elderly patient with AF, including the protection, with high safety, from stroke, from the risk of coronary complications, and from the impairment of kidney function.

Anticoagulant therapy for the prevention of recurrent stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation: a comprehensive risk management

Effective secondary prevention of ischemic stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) implies long-term oral anticoagulant therapy. It has been proven that the use of direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) is more effective, safer and more convenient for a patient than vitamin K antagonists. However, the selection of most effective and safe DOAC represented without direct comparisons in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) cannot be reliable due to the inevitable differences in the cohorts of studied patients and differences in methodological approaches. It should be noted that the population of patients in the Rivaroxaban Once Daily Oral Direct Factor Xa Inhibition Compared with Vitamin K Antagonism for Prevention of Stroke and Embolism Trial in Atrial Fibrillation (ROCKET AF) in terms of basic characteristics was as close as possible to the Russian population of AF patients compared with study populations of other DOACs. Of great importance for ensuring the overall benefit from DOACs is the possibility of comprehensive protection of the elderly patient with AF. This approach, along with the risk of recurrent stroke and possible bleeding events, takes into account other risks that can significantly worsen the prognosis and health of a patient with AF, such as the risk of coronary events, impairment of renal function, and cognitive impairment that can lead to low adherence to treatment. Rivaroxaban therapy makes it possible to simultaneously reduce the listed risks, providing comprehensive protection for an elderly patient with AF.

[Management of patients with atrial fibrillation and minor bleeding during therapy with direct oral anti-coagulants]

The recommended tactics for prevention of thromboembolic complications of atrial fibrillation (AF) is the oral anticoagulant (OAC) treatment. The drugs of choice for preventing stroke for most patients with AF, excluding some valvular defects, are direct OACs (DOACS). Regardless of the drug class, all anticoagulants, even at appropriate doses, increase the risk of bleeding. However, the development of minor bleedings is not an absolute indication for DOAC withdrawal. This review presents a tactics for management of patients with minor bleeding associated with the DOAC treatment.

An Integrated Approach to the Management of a Multimorbid Patient with Atrial Fibrillation from the Standpoint of Modern Guidelines: Rivaroxaban is in Focus

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a complex pathology that requires an integrated approach in both diagnosis and treatment, including optimal prevention of thrombosis, control of clinical symptoms, and identification and treatment of cardiovascular risk factors and comorbidities. The article analyzes some of the new positions of the recommendations of the European Society of Cardiology on atrial fibrillation, presented in 2020. Effective diagnostic and therapeutic approaches are discussed in the management of patients with AF in conditions of multimorbidity. The basic principles of the CC to ABC concept, introduced with the aim of improving a structured approach to the treatment of patients with AF, and the 4S-AF regimen necessary for decision on the use of oral anticoagulants, choosing a method of control of the rhythm and / or its frequency, choosing between ablation, cardioversion and antiarrhythmic drugs, as well as to determine the mode of treatment of major cardiovascular diseases. To improve the prognosis and achieve the best results in these patients, the most important is to reduce the risk of stroke, control cardiovascular risks and comorbidities, and ensure high adherence to the therapy within the framework of the concept of comprehensive patient protection. Rivaroxaban is considered by the authors of the article as one of the drugs that provides comprehensive anticoagulant protection of patients with AF. The efficacy profile of rivaroxaban in the prevention of acute cerebrovascular accident and high safety rates were confirmed in a population of multimorbid AF patients of different ages and the highest risk of stroke and / or bleeding.