Open heart
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To assess the safety (ie, risk of bleeding) and effectiveness (ie, risk of stroke/systemic embolism (SE)) separately for four non-vitamin K oral anticoagulants (NOACs; apixaban, dabigatran, edoxaban and rivaroxaban) versus warfarin in Japanese patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF), including those at high risk of bleeding and treated with reduced doses of NOACs. ⋯ In patients with NVAF primarily treated with reduced-dose NOACs, the risks of stroke/SE and major bleeding were significantly lower with NOACs versus warfarin.
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Comparative Study
Incidence, treatment and mortality of new-onset atrial fibrillation patients at the intensive care unit.
Critically ill patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) often develop atrial fibrillation (AF), with an incidence of around 5%. Stroke prevention in AF is well described in clinical guidelines. The extent to which stroke prevention is prescribed to ICU patients with AF is unknown. We aimed to determine the incidence of new-onset AF and describe stroke prevention strategies initiated on the ICU of our teaching hospital. Also, we compared mortality in patients with new-onset AF to critically ill patients with previously diagnosed AF and patients without any AF. ⋯ AF is associated with increased mortality in critically ill patients admitted to the ICU. More guidance is needed to optimise anticoagulant treatment in critically ill new-onset AF patients.
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Although acute myocardial infarction is a common cause of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA), the role of early coronary angiography in OHCA remains uncertain. We conducted a meta-analysis of observational studies to determine the association of early coronary angiography with survival in OHCA. ⋯ Among patients resuscitated from OHCA, early coronary angiography is associated with increased survival to discharge and favourable neurological outcome.
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Dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) combining aspirin and a P2Y12 receptor inhibitor has been consistently shown to reduce recurrent major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) or undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for stable coronary artery disease (CAD) compared with aspirin monotherapy, but at the expense of an increased risk of major bleeding. Nevertheless, the optimal duration of DAPT for secondary prevention of CAD remains uncertain, owing to the conflicting results of several large randomised trials. Among patients with stable CAD undergoing PCI with drug-eluting stents (DES), shorter durations of DAPT (3-6 months) were shown non-inferior to 12 or 24 months duration with respect to MACE, but reduced the rates of major bleeding. ⋯ Based on limited evidence, 12 months duration of DAPT is currently recommended in patients with ACS irrespective of their management strategy, but large ongoing randomised trials are currently assessing the efficacy and safety of a short-term DAPT strategy (3-6 months) for patients with ACS undergoing PCI with newer generation DES. Finally, several ongoing, large-scale, randomised trials are challenging the current concept of DAPT by investigating P2Y12 receptor inhibitors as single antiplatelet therapy and may potentially shift the paradigm of antiplatelet therapy after PCI in the near future. This article provides a contemporary state-of-the-art review of the current evidence on DAPT for secondary prevention of patients with CAD and its future perspectives.
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To assess whether primary sector healthcare in the form of chiropractic care is cost-effective compared with self-management in patients with musculoskeletal chest pain, that is, a subgroup of patients with non-specific chest pain. ⋯ Chiropractic care was more cost-effective than self-management. Therefore, chiropractic care can be seen as a good example of a targeted primary care approach for a subgroup of patients with non-specific chest pain.