Association of sex with outcomes in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention: a subgroup analysis of the global leaders randomized clinical trial

Importance: Women experience worse ischemic and bleeding outcomes after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Objectives: To assess the association of sex with patient outcomes at 2 years after contemporary PCI and with the efficacy and safety of 2 antiplatelet strategies. Design, Setting, and Analysis: This study is a prespecified subgroup analysis of the investigator-initiated, prospective, randomized GLOBAL LEADERS study evaluating 2 strategies of antiplatelet therapy after PCI in an unselected population including 130 secondary/tertiary care hospitals in different countries. The main study enrolled 15 991 unselected patients undergoing PCI between July 2013 and November 2015. Patients had an outpatient clinic visit at 30 days and 3, 6, 12, 18, and 24 months after the index procedure. Data were analyzed between January 1, 2019, and March 31, 2019. Interventions: Eligible patients were randomized to either the experimental or reference antiplatelet strategy. Experimental strategy consisted of 1 month of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) followed by 23 months of ticagrelor monotherapy, while the reference strategy comprised of 12 months of DAPT followed by 12 months of aspirin monotherapy. Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary efficacy end point was the composite of all-cause mortality and new Q-wave myocardial infarction at 2 years. The secondary safety end point was Bleeding Academic Research Consortium type 3 or 5 bleeding. Results: Of the 15 968 patients included in this study, 3714 (23.3%) were women. The risk of the primary end point at 2 years was similar between women and men (adjusted hazard ratio [HR], 1.00; 95% CI, 0.83-1.20). Compared with men, women had higher risk of Bleeding Academic Research Consortium type 3 or 5 bleeding (adjusted HR, 1.32; 95% CI, 1.04-1.67) and hemorrhagic stroke at 2 years (adjusted HR, 4.76; 95% CI, 1.92-11.81). At 2 years, there was no between-sex difference in the efficacy and safety of the 2 antiplatelet strategies. At 1 year, compared with DAPT, ticagrelor monotherapy was associated with a lower risk of bleeding in men (HR, 0.72; 95% CI, 0.53-0.98) but not in women (HR, 1.23; 95% CI, 0.80-1.89; P for interaction = .045). Conclusions and Relevance: Compared with men, women experienced a higher risk of bleeding and hemorrhagic stroke after PCI. The effect of 2 antiplatelet strategies on death and Q-wave myocardial infarction following PCI did not differ between the sexes at 2 years. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01813435

Influence of Bleeding Risk on Outcomes of Radial and Femoral Access for Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: An Analysis From the GLOBAL LEADERS Trial

Background: Radial artery access has been shown to reduce mortality and bleeding events, especially in patients with acute coronary syndromes. Despite this, interventional cardiologists experienced in femoral artery access still prefer that route for percutaneous coronary intervention. Little is known regarding the merits of each vascular access in patients stratified by their risk of bleeding. Methods: Patients from the Global Leaders trial were dichotomized into low or high risk of bleeding by the median of the PRECISE-DAPT score. Clinical outcomes were compared at 30 days. Results: In the overall population, there were no statistical differences between radial and femoral access in the rate of the primary end point, a composite of all-cause mortality, or new Q-wave myocardial infarction (MI) (hazard ratio [HR] 0.70, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.42-1.15). Radial access was associated with a significantly lower rate of the secondary safety end point, Bleeding Academic Research Consortium (BARC) 3 or 5 bleeding (HR 0.55, 95% CI 0.36-0.84). Compared by bleeding risk strata, in the high bleeding score population, the primary (HR 0.47, 95% CI 0.26-0.85; P = 0.012; Pinteraction = 0.019) and secondary safety (HR 0.57, 95% CI 0.35-0.95; P = 0.030; Pinteraction = 0.631) end points favoured radial access. In the low bleeding score population, however, the differences in the primary and secondary safety end points between radial and femoral artery access were no longer statistically significant. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that the outcomes of mortality or new Q-wave MI and BARC 3 or 5 bleeding favour radial access in patients with a high, but not those with a low, risk of bleeding. Because thisContexte : Il a et e d emontr e que l ’accès par l’artère radiale reduit la mortalite et les h emorragies, en particulier chez les patients presentant un syndrome coronarien aigu. Malgr e cela, les cardiologues interventionnels qui ont acquis de l’experience en matière d ’accès par l’artère femorale pr efèrent encore utiliser cette voie lorsqu ’ils doivent pratiquer une intervention coronarienne percutanee. On connaît mal l’interêt de chacune de ces techniques d ’accès vasculaire au regard du risque d’hemorragie. Methodologie : Les patients de l’essai GLOBAL LEADERS ont et e repartis en deux groupes, selon qu ’ils presentaient un risque d’hemorragie faible ou elev e d ’après le score PRECISE-DAPT median, puis les resultats cliniques ont et e compar es à 30 jours. Resultats : Dans l’ensemble de la population, aucune difference sta- tistiquement significative n’a et e observ ee entre l ’accès radial et l’accès femoral quant au critère d ’evaluation principal, compos e de la mortalite toutes causes confondues et d ’un nouvel infarctus du myocarde (IM) avec onde Q (rapport des risques instantanes [RRI] de 0,70; intervalle de confiance [IC] à 95 % : 0,42-1,15). L’accès radial a et e associe à un taux signi ficativement plus faible de survenue du critère secondaire d’evaluation de l ’innocuite, c ’est-à-dire une hemorragie de type 3 ou 5 selon la classification du BARC (Bleeding Academic Research Consortium) (RRI de 0,55; IC à 95 % : 0,36-0,84). Lorsqu’on compare les sujets en fonction du risque d’hemorragie, les critères d’evaluation de l ’innocuite principal (RRI de 0,47; IC à 95 % : 0,26- 0,85; p ¼ 0,012; pinteraction ¼ 0,019) et secondaire (RRI de 0,57; IC à 95 % : 0,35-0,95; p ¼ 0,030; pinteraction ¼ 0,631) sont favorables à l’accès radial au sein de la population presentant un risque d ’hemor- ragie elev e. Dans la population pr esentant un risque d ’hemorragie faible, les differences entre l ’accès radial et l’accès femoral quant aux critères d’evaluation de l ’innocuite principal et secondaire ne sont toutefois plus statistiquement significatives. Conclusions : Selon ces observations, les resultats concernant la mortalite ou la survenue d ’un nouvel IM avec onde Q et le risque d’hemorragie de type 3 ou 5 selon la classi fication du BARC indiquent que l’accès radial serait à privilegier lorsque le risque d ’hemorragie est elev e, mais pas lorsqu ’il est faible. Comme il ne s’agissait pas d’une analyse principale, il convient de considerer ces observations comme etant g en eratrices d ’hypothèses

Benefit and Risks of Aspirin in Addition to Ticagrelor in Acute Coronary Syndromes:A Post Hoc Analysis of the Randomized GLOBAL LEADERS Trial

Key PointsQuestionWhat are the benefits and risks of continuing aspirin in addition to P2Y12 receptor inhibition with ticagrelor among patients with acute coronary syndrome between 1 month and 12 months after percutaneous coronary intervention? FindingsIn this nonprespecified, post hoc analysis of the GLOBAL LEADERS randomized clinical trial, beyond 1 month after percutaneous coronary intervention in acute coronary syndrome, aspirin was associated with increased bleeding risk and appeared not to add to the benefit of ticagrelor on ischemic events. MeaningThe findings of this hypothesis-generating analysis pave the way for further trials evaluating aspirin-free antiplatelet strategies after percutaneous coronary intervention. ImportanceThe role of aspirin as part of antiplatelet regimens in acute coronary syndromes (ACS) needs to be clarified in the context of newer potent P2Y12 antagonists. ObjectiveTo evaluate the benefit and risks of aspirin in addition to ticagrelor among patients with ACS beyond 1 month after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Design, Setting, and ParticipantsThis is a nonprespecified, post hoc analysis of GLOBAL LEADERS, a randomized, open-label superiority trial comparing 2 antiplatelet treatment strategies after PCI. The trial included 130 secondary/tertiary care hospitals in different countries, with 15991 unselected patients with stable coronary artery disease or ACS undergoing PCI. Patients had outpatient visits at 1, 3, 6, 12, 18, and 24 months after index procedure. InterventionsThe experimental group received aspirin plus ticagrelor for 1 month followed by 23-month ticagrelor monotherapy; the reference group received aspirin plus either clopidogrel (stable coronary artery disease) or ticagrelor (ACS) for 12 months, followed by 12-month aspirin monotherapy. In this analysis, we examined the clinical outcomes occurring between 31 days and 365 days after randomization, specifically in patients with ACS who, within this time frame, were assigned to receive either ticagrelor alone or ticagrelor and aspirin. Main Outcomes and MeasuresThe primary outcome was the composite of all-cause death or new Q-wave myocardial infarction. ResultsOf 15968 participants, there were 7487 patients with ACS enrolled; 3750 patients were assigned to the experimental group and 3737 patients to the reference group. Between 31 and 365 days after randomization, the primary outcome occurred in 55 patients (1.5%) in the experimental group and in 75 patients (2.0%) in the reference group (hazard ratio [HR], 0.73; 95% CI, 0.51-1.03; P=.07); investigator-reported Bleeding Academic Research Consortium-defined bleeding type 3 or 5 occurred in 28 patients (0.8%) in the experimental group and in 54 patients (1.5%) in the reference arm (HR, 0.52; 95% CI, 0.33-0.81; P=.004). Conclusions and RelevanceBetween 1 month and 12 months after PCI in ACS, aspirin was associated with increased bleeding risk and appeared not to add to the benefit of ticagrelor on ischemic events. These findings should be interpreted as exploratory and hypothesis generating; however, they pave the way for further trials evaluating aspirin-free antiplatelet strategies after PCI. Trial RegistrationClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01813435. This secondary analysis of the GLOBAL LEADERS randomized clinical trial evaluates the benefit and risks of aspirin in addition to ticagrelor among patients with acute coronary syndrome beyond 1 month after percutaneous coronary intervention

Two years clinical outcomes with the state-of-the-art PCI for the treatment of bifurcation lesions: A sub-analysis of the SYNTAX II study

Background: Bifurcation PCI is associated with a lower rate of procedural success, especially in multivessel disease patients. We aimed to determine the impact of bifurcation treatment on 2-years clinical outcomes when a state-of-the-art PCI strategy (heart team decision-making using the SYNTAX score II, physiology guided coronary stenosis assessment, thin strut bioresorbable polymer drug-eluting stent, and intravascular ultrasound guidance) is followed. Methods: Three-ve

Association of Pulse Pressure With Clinical Outcomes in Patients Under Different Antiplatelet Strategies After Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: Analysis of GLOBAL LEADERS

Background: We evaluated the association of pulse pressure (PP) and different antiplatelet regimes with clinical and safety outcomes in an all-comers percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) population. Methods: In this analysis of GLOBAL LEADERS (n = 15,936) we compared the experimental therapy of 23 months of ticagrelor after 1 month of dual-antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) versus standard DAPT for 12 months followed by aspirin monotherapy in subjects who underwent PCI and were divided into 2 groups according to the median PP (60 mm Hg). The primary end point (all-cause death or new Q-wave myocardial infarction) and the composite end points: patient-oriented composite end points (POCE), Bleeding Academic Research Consortium (BARC) 3 or 5, and net adverse clinical events (NACE) were evaluated. Results: At 2 years, subjects in the high-PP group (n = 7971) had similar rates of the primary end point (4.3% vs 3.9%; P = 0.058), POCE (14.9% vs 12.7%; P = 0.051), and BARC 3 or 5 (2.5% vs 1.7%; P = 0.355) and higher rates of NACE (16.4% vs 13.7%; P = 0.037) compared with the low-PP group (n = 7965). Among patients with PP < 60 mm Hg, the primary end point (3.4% vs 4.4%, adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 0.77, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.61-0.96), POCE (11.8% vs 13.5%, aHR 0.86, 95% CI 0.76-0.98), NACE (12.8% vs 14.7%, aHR 0.85, 95% CI 0.76-0.96), and BARC 3 or 5 (1.4% vs 2.1%, aHR 0.69, 95% CI 0.49-0.97) were lower with ticagrelor monotherapy compared with DAPT. The only significant interaction was for BARC 3 or 5 (P = 0.008). Conclusions: After contemporary PCI, subjects with high PP levels experienced high rates of NACE at 2 years. In those with low PP, ticagrelor monotherapy led to a lower risk of bleeding events compared with standard DAPT

Clinical relevance of ticagrelor monotherapy following 1-month dual antiplatelet therapy after bifurcation percutaneous coronary intervention: Insight from GLOBAL LEADERS trial

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of ticagrelor monotherapy following 1-month dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for bifurcat

Impact of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and dyspnoea on clinical outcomes in ticagrelor treated patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention in the randomized GLOBAL LEADERS trial

AIMS: To evaluate long-term safety and efficacy of ticagrelor monotherapy in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary interventions (PCIs) in relation to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) at baseline and the occurrence of dyspnoea reported as adverse event (AE) that may lead to treatment non-adherence. METHODS AND RESULTS: This is a non-prespecified, post hoc analysis of the randomized GLOBAL LEADERS trial (n = 15 991), comparing the experimental strategy of 23-month ticagrelor monotherapy following 1-mo