Abstract
AIMS: This study sought to investigate current anticoagulatory treatment patterns and clinical outcome in patients undergoing transcatheter mitral valve repair (MitraClip). METHODS AND RESULTS: In a retrospective study of a German claims database (InGef research database), anticoagulatory treatment regimens were assessed using any drug prescription post discharge within the first 90 days after MitraClip procedure. Clinical events between 30 days and 6 months were examined by treatment regime. The study population comprised 1342 patients undergoing MitraClip procedure between 2014 and 2018. 22.4% received antiplatelet monotherapy, 20.8% oral anticoagulation (OAC) plus antiplatelet therapy, 19.4% OAC monotherapy, 11.7% dual antiplatelet therapy, 2.8% triple therapy and 21.0% did not receive any anticoagulatory drugs. 63% of patients with OAC received non-vitamin-K antagonist oral anticoagulants (NOAC). A total of 168 patients were newly prescribed OAC after MitraClip, of whom 12 patients (7.1%) had no diagnosis of atrial fibrillation or venous thromboembolism. 40% of patients with OAC prior to MitraClip did not have any OAC after MitraClip. The adjusted risk of all-cause mortality was significantly increased in patients with no anticoagulatory treatment (HR 3.84, 95% CI 2.33-6.33, p < 0.0001) when compared to antiplatelet monotherapy whereas the other regimes were not significantly different. CONCLUSIONS: This large real-world data analysis demonstrates a heterogeneous spectrum of prescriptions for anticoagulant therapies after MitraClip. Considering relevant differences in clinical outcome across treatment groups, major effort is warranted for controlled trials in order to establish evidence-based recommendations on anticoagulatory treatment after percutaneous mitral valve repair.