Table 3.
Baseline characteristics of patients switched from VKA to NOAC with or without INR testing. Of note, patients were only evaluable if the dates of last intake of VKA and first NOAC were available (n = 546)
| All evaluable transitions n = 546 | Transition with INR testing n = 410 | Transition without INR testing n = 136 | INR testing vs. no INR testing | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age (years) mean ± SD | 71.9 ± 11.6 | 71.5 ± 11.5 | 73.3 ± 11.8 | P = 0.119 |
| Male n (%) | 282 (51.6) | 214 (52.2) | 68 (50) | P = 0.693 |
| SPAF/VTE n (%) | 424/122 (77.7/22.3) | 305/105 (74.4/25.6) | 119/17 (87.5/12.5) | P = 0.001 |
| Interval (days) between last VKA and first NOAC intake Median (IQR) | 2 (3) | 2 (3) | 2 (3) | P = 0.455 |
| Transition from VKA to NOAC by GP/specialist | 260/286 52.4/47.6 |
205/205 50/50 |
81/55 59.6/40.4 |
P = 0.060 |
| Prior stroke or systemic embolism n (%) | 73 (13.4) | 54 (13.2) | 19 (14.0) | P = 0.884 |
| Concomitant antiplatelet therapy n (%) | 27 (4.9) | 20(4.9) | 7 (5.1) | P > 0.999 |
| HAS-BLED score >3 | 26 (4.8) | 19 (4.6) | 7 (5.1) | P = 0.817 |
Results of statistical significance are in bold. Abbreviations are as follows: GP, general practitioner; INR, international normalized ratio; IQR, interquartile range; NOAC, novel oral anticoagulants; SD, standard deviation; SPAF, stroke prevention in atrial fibrillation; VKA, vitamin-K antagonists; VTE, venous thromboembolism.