Bivalirudin vs. unfractionated heparin during percutaneous coronary interventions in patients with stable and unstable angina pectoris: 1-year results of the ISAR-REACT 3 trial.

Author(s): Schulz S, Mehilli J, Ndrepepa G, Neumann FJ, Birkmeier KA, Kufner S, Richardt G, Berger PB, Schomig A, Kastrati A

Affiliation(s): Deutsches Herzzentrum, Technische Universitat, Munich, Germany. schulzs@dhm.mhn.de

Publication date & source: 2010-03, Eur Heart J., 31(5):582-7. Epub 2010 Feb 11.

Publication type: Comparative Study; Multicenter Study; Randomized Controlled Trial; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

AIMS: In ISAR-REACT 3, 30-day outcomes in 4570 biomarker negative patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) > or =2 h after pre-treatment with 600 mg of clopidogrel revealed less bleeding with bivalirudin compared with unfractionated heparin, but no difference in 30-day net clinical benefit. The objective of the present analysis was to assess the impact of bivalirudin vs. heparin on 1-year outcomes in ISAR-REACT 3. METHODS AND RESULTS: The primary outcome for this analysis was the composite of death, myocardial infarction, or target vessel revascularization 1 year after randomization. The composite of death or myocardial infarction was a secondary outcome. At 1 year, the primary outcome occurred in 17.1% of patients assigned to bivalirudin vs. 17.5% assigned to heparin [hazard ratio (HR), 0.98; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.86-1.13; P = 0.816]. The combined incidence of death or myocardial infarction was 7.7% in the bivalirudin group vs. 6.7% in the heparin group (HR, 1.15; 95% CI, 0.93-1.43; P = 0.200). The mortality rate was 1.9% in the bivalirudin group and 1.7% in the heparin group (HR, 1.10; 95% CI, 0.71-1.70; P = 0.667). At 1 year, no significant differences in the primary outcome were observed with bivalirudin and heparin in any of the subgroups analysed. CONCLUSION: Bivalirudin and unfractionated heparin during PCI provide comparable outcomes at 1 year in biomarker negative patients undergoing PCI after pre-treatment with 600 mg of clopidogrel. Clinical trial registration information: URL www.clinicaltrials.gov; Unique identifier NCT00262054.