1. Direct Oral Anticoagulants and Concomitant Anti-seizure Medications: A Retrospective, Case-Control Study in a Real-World Setting.
- Author
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Rota E, Immovilli P, Pappalardo I, Risso R, Zuccotti G, Agosti S, Morelli N, Rovere ME, Costa I, and D'Orsi ML
- Subjects
- Humans, Retrospective Studies, Female, Male, Case-Control Studies, Aged, Middle Aged, Administration, Oral, Epilepsy drug therapy, Italy, Drug Interactions, Valproic Acid administration & dosage, Valproic Acid therapeutic use, Valproic Acid adverse effects, Levetiracetam administration & dosage, Levetiracetam therapeutic use, Levetiracetam adverse effects, Drug Therapy, Combination, Hemorrhage chemically induced, Hemorrhage epidemiology, Aged, 80 and over, Seizures drug therapy, Adult, Anticonvulsants administration & dosage, Anticonvulsants adverse effects, Anticonvulsants therapeutic use, Anticoagulants administration & dosage, Anticoagulants adverse effects, Anticoagulants therapeutic use
- Abstract
Purpose: Although prescription of direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) for epileptic patients on anti-seizure medications (ASMs) is on the increase, international guidelines pose strict restrictions because this may lead to pharmacologic interactions. However, current evidence on their clinical relevance remains scanty. This retrospective, case-control study assessed the frequency of ischemic/hemorrhagic events and epileptic seizures involving DOAC-ASM cotherapy in the real world, compared with DOAC and ASM monotherapy, in age- and gender-matched controls., Methods: Data on patients who had been prescribed a concomitant DOAC and ASM therapy for at least 6 months were extracted from the database of the Pharmaceutical Service of the Alessandria Province (Italy). After exclusions, the case group included 124 patients, 44 on valproic acid (VPA) and 80 on levetiracetam (LEV) concomitant with a DOAC, and it was compared with the DOAC-control and ASM-control groups. The clinical and laboratory data were extracted from the electronic archives of the hospitals in the same province., Findings: Two (1.6%) ischemic and 2 (1.6%) major hemorrhagic events were observed in the case group. Four (3.2%) ischemic and no hemorrhagic events occurred in the DOAC-control group. There were no statistically significant differences in the ischemic and hemorrhagic events between the case group (patients on concomitant LEV or VPA who were prescribed a DOAC) and the DOAC-control group, and there was no difference in the recurrence rate of epileptic seizures between the case group and the ASM-control group., Implications: Although this study has some limits, mainly the small sample size, our findings indicate that neither LEV nor VPA concomitant treatment significantly affects the effects of DOACs in a real-world setting., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest All the authors report that they have no conflicts of interest regarding the content of this article., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)
- Published
- 2024
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