Summary
Vitamin K antagonists (VKA) therapy is increasingly used in elderly for prevention
of venous thromboembolism (VTE) and of stroke in atrial fibrillation (AF). Glomerular
filtration rate (GFR), usually estimated from different equations, decreases progressively
with age and it is a risk factor for bleeding. In the frame of the EPICA study, a
multicentre prospective observational study including 4,093 patients ≥80 years naïve
to VKA treated for AF or after VTE, we performed this ancillary study to evaluate
the prevalence of chronic kidney diseases (CKD) by estimated GFR (eGFR). Incidence
of bleedings was recorded and bleeding risk was evaluated in relation to eGFR calculated
by Cockroft-Gault (C-G); Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) and Chronic
Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration (CKD-EPI) formulas. In addition, the agreement
among the three eGFR formulas was evaluated. We recorded 179 major bleedings (rate
1.87 x100 patient-years [py]), 26 fatal (rate 0.27 x100 py). Moderate CKD was detected
in 69.3%, 59.3% and 47.0% and severe CKD in 5.8%, 7.4% and 10.0% of cases by C-G,
MDRD and CKD-EPI, respectively. Bleeding risk was higher in patients with severe CKD
irrespective of the applied equation. This study confirms that CKD represents an independent
risk factor for bleeding and that a wide proportion of elderly on VKA had severe or
moderate CKD, suggesting the need for frequent monitoring. Although the different
available equations yield different eGFR, all appear to similarly predict the risk
of major bleeding.
Keywords
Bleeding - elderly - glomerular filtration rate - VKA treatment