Effectiveness And Safety Of Anticoagulant Therapy With Rivaroxaban In Patients After Radiofrequence Catheter Ablation

OBJECTIVE: To evaluating safety and effectiveness of anticoagulanttherapy with rivaroxaban in patient after radiofrequence catheter ablation(RFCA) of atrial fibrillation (AF).METHODS： A cohort of150patients who underwent RFCA of AFwere enrolled. The150patients were divided into Rivaroxaban Group (50patients) and Warfarin Group (100patients). In Rivaroxaban Group,rivaroxaban10mg, bid or20mg, QD was given for1month, and then20mgdaily or10mg daily for1more month according to the patient’s situation. Ifthe CHADS2was0and no AF was detected in one patient, rivaroxaban10mgdaily was given in the patient for the second month, otherwise20mg daily for1more month. In Warfarin Group, standard medication of warfarin was givenfor2months by adjusting the INR in the range between2.0and3.0. All thepatients took the same anticoagulant drug during the whole period ofanticoagulation therapy.RESULT：1. Baseline characteristic comparison:(1) Gender (m/f):There was significant difference between Warfarin Group (75male vs.25female) and Rivaroxaban Group (28vs.22)(P<0.05).(2) There were nodifferences in age, body mass index (BMI), blood pressure, atrial fibrillationtype, past treatment, CHADS2score, coexistent diseases, and creatinineclearance rate (Ccr)(P>0.05).2. Compairion of the efficacy and safetybetween two groups.(1) Efficacy: There was no difference of the efficacy between the2groups, including death and thromboembolism events (cerebralembolism, pulmonary embolism and systemic emboli). The primary efficacyend points were0out of50patients in Rivaroxaban Group and0out of100patients in Warfarin Group.(2) Safety analysis: There were no TIMI majorbleeding events in both groups. There were no significant differences in minorbleeding events between Rivaroxaban Group (2gingival hemorrhages and1epistaxis) and Warfarin Group (5gingival hemorrhages,2fundus hemorrhages,2epistaxis,1lower extremity hemorrhagic spots,1bloody phlegm)(P>0.05).CONCLUSIONS： Compared with oral wafarin, the safety andeffectiveness of oral rivaroxaban had no inferior effect in the patients afterRFCA of AF. Rivaroxaban could be safely and effectively used in AF patientswith low or middle risk of thromboembolism after RFCA.