Apixaban Better in Preventing Stroke, Blood Clots: Study

Apixaban may be safer and more effective than rivaroxaban in preventing strokes and systemic blood clots in patients with atrial fibrillation, according to a large cohort study published in Annals of Internal Medicine. Patients with atrial fibrillation are often prescribed anticoagulants to prevent blood clots or stroke. Apixaban and rivaroxaban are newer blood thinners that are being recommended over warfarin because of their improved safety.

Although trials have individually compared apixaban and rivaroxaban with warfarin in patients with atrial fibrillation, few studies have compared the two treatments with each other.

Researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital and Sinai Health studied a nationwide U.S. commercial insurance claims database to compare the safety and effectiveness of apixaban versus rivaroxaban for patients newly prescribed one of the blood thinners for nonvalvular atrial fibrillation.

Two closely matched treatment groups included 39,351 patients who were prescribed apixaban and 39,351 prescribed rivaroxaban.

At 290 days follow-up, the rivaroxaban group had a higher rate of stroke or systemic blood clots than the apixaban group, and the apixaban group had a lower rate of gastrointestinal bleeding or bleeding in the brain than the rivaroxaban group.

According to the lead author, the results should help to inform decision making when discussing treatment options with patients who have atrial fibrillation.

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Source-Eurekalert