Table 1.
Main baseline clinical features
| Variable | Patients (n = 91) | Levetiracetam (n = 41) | Valproic acid (n = 20) | Phenobarbital (n = 11) | Carbamazepine (n = 10) | Other drugsa (9) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age years, mean ± SD | 78.29 ± 9.5 | 77.95 ± 9.5 | 74.29 ± 9.5 | 85.91 ± 5.5 | 80.60 ± 4.7 | 79.63 ± 13.9 |
| Age > 75 years, n (%) | 72 (79) | 31 (76) | 13 (65) | 10 (91) | 10 (100) | 8 (89) |
| Female, n (%) | 45 (50) | 17 (41) | 14 (70) | 5 (45) | 5 (50) | 4 (44) |
| Previous stroke/TIA, n (%) | 44 (48) | 22 (54) | 8 (40) | 6 (55) | 3 (30) | 5 (55) |
| Type of DOAC, | ||||||
| Dabigatran, n (%) | 15 (17) | 8 (19) | 5 (25) | 0 (0) | 2 (20) | 0 (0) |
| Rivaroxaban, n (%) | 25 (27) | 8 (19) | 6 (30) | 6 (55) | 4 (40) | 1 (11) |
| Apixaban, n (%) | 42 (46) | 23 (56) | 6 (30) | 3 (27) | 3 (30) | 7 (77) |
| Edoxaban, n (%) | 9 (10) | 2 (5) | 3 (15) | 2 (18) | 1 (10) | 1 (11) |
| Reduced dose DOAC, n (%) | 34 (37) | 12 (29) | 10 (50) | 6 (55) | 5 (50) | 1 (11) |
| Type of AF, | ||||||
| First diagnosis, n (%) | 9 (10) | 2 (5) | 4 (20) | 1 (9) | 0 (0) | 2 (22) |
| Paroxysmal, n (%) | 22 (24) | 9 (22) | 9 (45) | 1 (9) | 2 (20) | 1 (11) |
| Permanent, n (%) | 60 (66) | 30 (73) | 7 (35) | 9 (82) | 8 (80) | 6 (66) |
| Hypertension, n (%) | 75 (82) | 33 (80) | 17 (85) | 10 (91) | 7 (70) | 8 (89) |
| Chronic heart failure, n (%) | 31 (34) | 15 (37) | 5 (25) | 4 (36) | 6 (60) | 1 (11) |
| Diabetes mellitus, n (%) | 19 (21) | 9 (22) | 4 (20) | 2 (18) | 1 (10) | 3 (33) |
| Vascular disease, n (%) | 18 (20) | 5 (12) | 5 (25) | 3 (27) | 1 (10) | 4 (40) |
| Previous bleeding, n (%) | 31 (34) | 12 (29) | 9 (45) | 2 (18) | 5 (50) | 3 (33) |
| Creatinine value, mean ± SD | 0.97 ± 0.3 | 1.03 ± 0.3 | 0.85 ± 0.26 | 0.92 ± 0.33 | 0.92 ± 0.32 | 1.04 ± 0.28 |
|
eGFR mL/min, mean ± SD Range |
69.0 ± 21.9 36-126 |
63.8 ± 15.4 | 80.1 ± 22.8 | 61.7 ± 29.7 | 71.6 ± 30.4 | 61.0 ± 14.2 |
| CHA2DS2-VASc score, mean ± SD | 4.76 ± 1.59 | 4.63 ± 1.46 | 4.60 ± 1.72 | 5.18 ± 1.77 | 4.76 ± 1.59 | 5.38 ± 1.50 |
| Range | 2–9 | |||||
| CHA2DS2-VASc = 0-1, n (%) | 1 (1) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| CHA2DS2-VASc = 2-3, n (%) | 19 (21) | 10 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| CHA2DS2-VASc = 4, n (%) | 18 (20) | 7 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| CHA2DS2-VASc = 5, n (%) | 23 (25) | 12 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 2 |
| CHA2DS2-VASc = 6-9, n (%) | 30 (33) | 12 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 5 |
| HAS-BLED score, mean ± SD | 2.67 ± 1.26 | 2.67 ± 1.26 | 2.30 ± 1.17 | 3.18 ± 1.32 | 2.67 ± 1.26 | 2.88 ± 1.24 |
| Range | 1–7 | |||||
| HAS-BLED = 0, n (%) | 2 (2) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| HAS-BLED = 1, n (%) | 17 (19) | 9 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| HAS-BLED = 2, n (%) | 20 (22) | 8 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 0 |
| HAS-BLED = 3, n (%) | 30 (33) | 14 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 6 |
| HAS-BLED = 4-7, n (%) | 22 (24) | 10 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 2 |
| Previous VKA use, n (%) | 20 (22) | 8 (19) | 4 (20) | 4 (36) | 1 (10) | 3 (33) |
| Concomitant use of aspirin or NSAID, n (%) | 13 (14) | 5 (12) | 4 (20) | 3 (27) | 0 (0) | 1 (11) |
|
BMI kg/m2, mean ± SD Range |
25.14 ± 4.3 15–44 |
24.86 ± 3.1 | 25.39 ± 6.4 | 23.55 ± 2.9 | 26.30 ± 6.3 | 26.8 ± 2.1 |
AF atrial fibrillation, DOAC direct oral anticoagulant; eGFR estimated glomerular filtration rate; NSAID non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, TIA transient ischaemic attack, VKA vitamin K-antagonist
aPatients treated with: oxcarbazepine = 2; pregabalin = 2; phenytoin = 1; gabapentin = 1; lacosamide = 1; lamotrigine = 1; topiramate = 1