Rate and duration of hospitalisation for acute pulmonary embolism in the real-world clinical practice of different countries : Analysis from the RIETE registry

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The management of acute venous thromboembolism in clinical practice. Results from the European PREFER in VTE Registry

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in Europe. Data from real-world registries are necessary, as clinical trials do not represent the full spectrum of VTE patients seen in clinical practice. We aimed to document the epidemiology, management and outcomes of VTE using data from a large, observational database. PREFER in VTE was an international, non-interventional disease registry conducted between January 2013 and July 2015 in primary and secondary care across seven European countries. Consecutive patients with acute VTE were documented and followed up over 12 months. PREFER in VTE included 3,455 patients with a mean age of 60.8 ± 17.0 years. Overall, 53.0 % were male. The majority of patients were assessed in the hospital setting as inpatients or outpatients (78.5 %). The diagnosis was deep-vein thrombosis (DVT) in 59.5 % and pulmonary embolism (PE) in 40.5 %. The most common comorbidities were the various types of cardiovascular disease (excluding hypertension; 45.5 %), hypertension (42.3 %) and dyslipidaemia (21.1 %). Following the index VTE, a large proportion of patients received initial therapy with heparin (73.2 %), almost half received a vitamin K antagonist (48.7 %) and nearly a quarter received a DOAC (24.5 %). Almost a quarter of all presentations were for recurrent VTE, with >80 % of previous episodes having occurred more than 12 months prior to baseline. In conclusion, PREFER in VTE has provided contemporary insights into VTE patients and their real-world management, including their baseline characteristics, risk factors, disease history, symptoms and signs, initial therapy and outcomes

Abstract 19824: Percutaneous Mitral Balloon Comissurotomy versus Surgical Comissurotomy in the Treatment of Severe Symptomatic Mitral Stenosis

Introduction: Percutaneous mitral balloon comissurotomy (PMBC) and surgical comissurotomy can be used for treatment of stage D mitral stenosis. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing PMBC and surgery have shown inconsistent results. Hypothesis: PMBC is associated with better hemodynamic and clinical results for the treatment of stage D mitral stenosis. Methods: Databases were searched for RCTs that compared double-balloon PMBC to surgical comissurotomy. Inclusion criteria were no left atrial clot, a favorable valve morphology and absence of significant mitral regurgitation. Clinical and hemodynamic outcomes were evaluated within short-term (less than 6 months) and long-term (over 6 months) follow up. Random-effects model was used due to anticipated heterogeneity. Results: A total of 6 RCTs with 474 patients were included, of whom 222 (46.8%) underwent PBMC. In short-term follow up, PMBC was associated with a larger mitral valve area (MVA) compared to surgical comissurotomy (mean difference 0.41 cm2; 95% CI 0.16-0.67; p=0.002; figure 1A), but also a higher incidence of moderate to severe mitral regurgitation (MR; OR 2.63; 95% CI 1.04-6.70; p=0.04; figure 1B). Short-term symptomatic (NYHA II-IV) heart failure (p=0.40) and new MR (p=0.32), as well as long-term MVA (p=0.23), restenosis (p=0.39), symptomatic heart failure (p=0.11), new MR (p=0.64) and need for reintervention (p=0.21) were not significantly different between groups. Conclusions: Our meta-analysis of RCTs suggests that PMBC is associated with an increased MVA as well as a higher incidence of moderate to severe MR when compared to surgery in the treatment of stage D MS. Therefore, the decision to proceed with PMBC or surgery in patients suitable for both procedures must rely on patient preferences, physician experience and risk of procedure-specific complications, such as left-to-right shunt with PMBC and wound infection/dehiscence with surgical comissurotomy