BACKGROUND: Short and rare episodes of atrial fibrillation (AF) are commonly detected using implanted devices (device-detected AF) in patients with prior stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA). The effectiveness and safety of oral anticoagulation in patients with prior stroke or TIA and device-detected AF but with no ECG-documented AF is unclear. METHODS AND RESULTS: This prespecified analysis of the NOAH-AFNET 6 (Non-Vitamin K Antagonist Oral Anticoagulants in Patients With Atrial High Rate Episodes) trial with post hoc elements assessed the effect of oral anticoagulation in patients with device-detected AF with and without a prior stroke or TIA in the randomized, double-blind, double-dummy NOAH-AFNET 6 trial. Outcomes were stroke, systemic embolism, and cardiovascular death (primary outcome) and major bleeding and death (safety outcome). A prior stroke or TIA was found in 253 patients with device-detected AF randomized in the NOAH-AFNET 6 (mean age, 78 years; 36.4% women). There was no treatment interaction with prior stroke or TIA for any of the primary and secondary time-to-event outcomes. In patients with a prior stroke or TIA, 14 out of 122 patients experienced a primary outcome event with anticoagulation (5.7% per patient-year). Without anticoagulation, there were 16 out of 131 patients with an event (6.3% per patient-year). The rate of stroke was lower than expected (anticoagulation: 4 out of 122 [1.6% per patient-year]; no anticoagulation: 6 out of 131 [2.3% per patient-year]). Numerically, there were more major bleeding events with anticoagulation in patients with prior stroke or TIA (8 out of 122 patients) than without anticoagulation (2 out of 131 patients). CONCLUSIONS: Anticoagulation appears to have ambiguous effects in patients with device-detected AF and a prior stroke or TIA in this hypothesis-generating analysis of the NOAH-AFNET 6 in the absence of ECG-documented AF, partially due to a low rate of stroke without anticoagulation.

• MeSH
• Anticoagulants * administration & dosage   adverse effects   therapeutic use   MeSH
• Administration, Oral MeSH
• Time Factors MeSH
• Stroke * prevention & control   etiology   MeSH
• Double-Blind Method MeSH
• Atrial Fibrillation * drug therapy   complications   diagnosis   MeSH
• Pacemaker, Artificial MeSH
• Hemorrhage chemically induced   MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Aged, 80 and over MeSH
• Aged MeSH
• Ischemic Attack, Transient * prevention & control   etiology   MeSH
• Treatment Outcome MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH
• Male MeSH
• Aged, 80 and over MeSH
• Aged MeSH
• Female MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Multicenter Study MeSH
• Randomized Controlled Trial MeSH

Epizody rychlé frekvence síní (atrial high‐rate episodes, AHRE) jsou síňové arytmie detekované implantovanými srdečními zařízeními. Dosud nebylo známo, zda nás výskyt AHRE u pacientů bez fibrilace síní opravňuje k zahájení an­ti­ko­agu­lač­ní léčby. Událostmi řízená dvojitě zaslepená, randomizovaná klinická studie NOAH‐AFNET 6 zahrnula pacienty ve věku 65 let nebo starší, kteří měli AHRE trvající alespoň šest minut a alespoň jeden další rizikový faktor pro vznik cévní mozkové příhody (CMP). Pacienti byli randomizováni v poměru 1 : 1 k podávání edoxabanu nebo placeba. Primární cílový ukazatel účinnosti byl složen z kardiovaskulárního úmrtí, CMP nebo systémové embolie a hodnocen v analýze doby do události. Bezpečnostní cílový ukazatel zahrnoval úmrtí z jakékoliv příčiny nebo velké krvácení. U pacientů s AHRE detekovanými implantabilními zařízeními antikoagulace edoxabanem ve srovnání s placebem významně nesnížila incidenci kardiovaskulárního úmrtí, CMP nebo systémové embolie, ale vedla k vyššímu výskytu úmrtí nebo velkého krvácení. Výskyt CMP byl v obou skupinách nízký.

AHRE (atrial high‐rate episodes) may be detected by implantable cardiac devices. So far, it is not clear whether AHRE unaccompanied by atrial fibrillation mandates the initiation of anticoagulation therapy. In the event‐driven, double blind, randomized clinical trial NOAH‐AFNET 6, patients aged 65 or older with a history of AHRE lasting at least 6 minutes and at least one more risk factor for stroke were investigated. They were randomized 1:1 to edoxaban or placebo. The composite primary endpoint consisted of cardiovascular death, stroke and systemic embolization – time to event was analyzed. All‐cause death and major bleeding represented the safety endpoint. In patients with AHRE detected by implantable cardiac devices, anticoagulation with edoxaban did not ensure significant decrease in the incidence of cardiovascular death, stroke and systemic embolization while it was associated with higher incidence of all‐cause death and major bleeding (compared to placebo). The stroke rate was low in both groups.

• Keywords
• edoxaban, studie NOAH-AFNET 6,
• MeSH
• Anticoagulants * classification   therapeutic use   MeSH
• Stroke etiology   mortality   MeSH
• Double-Blind Method MeSH
• Embolism etiology   mortality   MeSH
• Atrial Fibrillation * diagnosis   drug therapy   MeSH
• Cardiovascular Diseases classification   mortality   MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Aged, 80 and over MeSH
• Aged MeSH
• Arrhythmias, Cardiac diagnosis   drug therapy   classification   MeSH
• Heart Rate drug effects   MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH
• Aged, 80 and over MeSH
• Aged MeSH
• Publication type
• Randomized Controlled Trial MeSH

BACKGROUND: Device-detected atrial high-rate episodes (AHREs) are atrial arrhythmias detected by implanted cardiac devices. AHREs resemble atrial fibrillation but are rare and brief. Whether the occurrence of AHREs in patients without atrial fibrillation (as documented on a conventional electrocardiogram [ECG]) justifies the initiation of anticoagulants is not known. METHODS: We conducted an event-driven, double-blind, double-dummy, randomized trial involving patients 65 years of age or older who had AHREs lasting for at least 6 minutes and who had at least one additional risk factor for stroke. Patients were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to receive edoxaban or placebo. The primary efficacy outcome was a composite of cardiovascular death, stroke, or systemic embolism, evaluated in a time-to-event analysis. The safety outcome was a composite of death from any cause or major bleeding. RESULTS: The analysis population consisted of 2536 patients (1270 in the edoxaban group and 1266 in the placebo group). The mean age was 78 years, 37.4% were women, and the median duration of AHREs was 2.8 hours. The trial was terminated early, at a median follow-up of 21 months, on the basis of safety concerns and the results of an independent, informal assessment of futility for the efficacy of edoxaban; at termination, the planned enrollment had been completed. A primary efficacy outcome event occurred in 83 patients (3.2% per patient-year) in the edoxaban group and in 101 patients (4.0% per patient-year) in the placebo group (hazard ratio, 0.81; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.60 to 1.08; P = 0.15). The incidence of stroke was approximately 1% per patient-year in both groups. A safety outcome event occurred in 149 patients (5.9% per patient-year) in the edoxaban group and in 114 patients (4.5% per patient-year) in the placebo group (hazard ratio, 1.31; 95% CI, 1.02 to 1.67; P = 0.03). ECG-diagnosed atrial fibrillation developed in 462 of 2536 patients (18.2% total, 8.7% per patient-year). CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with AHREs detected by implantable devices, anticoagulation with edoxaban did not significantly reduce the incidence of a composite of cardiovascular death, stroke, or systemic embolism as compared with placebo, but it led to a higher incidence of a composite of death or major bleeding. The incidence of stroke was low in both groups. (Funded by the German Center for Cardiovascular Research and others; NOAH-AFNET 6 ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT02618577; ISRCTN number, ISRCTN17309850.).

• MeSH
• Anticoagulants * adverse effects   therapeutic use   MeSH
• Stroke etiology   prevention & control   MeSH
• Double-Blind Method MeSH
• Embolism * drug therapy   etiology   MeSH
• Atrial Fibrillation complications   diagnosis   MeSH
• Electrodes, Implanted MeSH
• Factor Xa Inhibitors * adverse effects   therapeutic use   MeSH
• Hemorrhage chemically induced   MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Risk Factors MeSH
• Aged MeSH
• Arrhythmias, Cardiac * complications   diagnosis   MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH
• Male MeSH
• Aged MeSH
• Female MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Randomized Controlled Trial MeSH