Direct oral anticoagulants vs. vitamin K antagonists for left ventricular thrombus: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

Background

Current guidelines recommend vitamin K antagonists (VKAs) to reduce the risk of systemic thromboembolic (STE) events in patients with left ventricular (LV) thrombus. Direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) are an emerging alternative to VKAs; however, data supporting DOAC use in LV thrombus are still lacking. We conducted this systematic review and meta-analysis to compare the efficacy and safety between DOACs and VKAs in this population.

Methods

We searched MEDLINE, Embase, and the Cochrane Library databases from inception to October 2020 to identify studies that compared clinical outcomes of interest, including stroke or any STE, LV thrombus resolution, and bleeding, between patients who used DOACs and VKAs for LV thrombus. Data from each study were combined using the random-effects model.

Results

Eight cohort studies with a total of 1771 patients (426 in DOAC group, 1345 in VKA group) were included. There were no statistically significant differences between VKA group and DOAC group on rates of STE events (pooled RR = 1.12, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.91–1.39, p = .286), LV thrombus resolution (pooled RR = 1.09, 95% CI: 0.94–1.27, p = .242), or bleeding events (pooled RR = 0.94, 95% CI: 0.59–1.51, p = .808).

Conclusions

Our meta-analysis found no significant differences in rates of STE events, LV thrombus resolution, or bleeding events between the use of DOACs and VKAs in LV thrombus. Further randomised controlled trials are needed to confirm our findings

Highlights

• There is limited evidence comparing the use of direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) to vitamin K antagonists (VKAs) in left ventricular (LV) thrombus.

• Our systematic review and meta-analysis showed that DOACs are not inferior to VKAs in the incidence of systemic thromboembolism (STE), the rate of LV thrombus resolution, and the risk of bleeding.

• Current evidence is based on observational studies only. Further randomised controlled trials are needed to confirm the findings.

Keywords:

• LV thrombus
• direct oral anticoagulants
• vitamin K antagonists
• LV thrombus resolution
• systemic thromboembolism

Acknowledgments

Matt Roslund, Bassett Healthcare Network’s librarian for proofreading the manuscript and help with extensive literature searching.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.