Benefit of Bivalirudin Versus Heparin After Transradial and Transfemoral Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

Bivalirudin, a direct thrombin inhibitor, has been shown to reduce major bleeding and provide a better safety profile compared to unfractionated heparin (UFH) in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) through transfemoral access. Data pertaining to the clinical benefit of bivalirudin compared to UFH monotherapy in patients undergoing transradial PCI are lacking. The present study sought to compare the in-hospital net clinical adverse events, including death, myocardial infarction, target vessel revascularization, and bleeding, for these 2 antithrombotic regimens for all patients at a tertiary care, high-volume radial center. From April 2009 to February 2011, all patients treated with bivalirudin were matched by access site to those receiving UFH. The patients in the bivalirudin group (n = 125) were older (72 ± 13 years vs 66 ± 11 years; p <0.0001), more often had chronic kidney disease (51% vs 30%; p = 0.0012), and more often underwent primary PCI (30% vs 14%, p <0.0037) than the UFH-treated patients (n = 125). A radial approach was used in 71% of both groups. The baseline bleeding risk according to Mehranʹs score was similar in both groups (14 ± 9 vs 15 ± 8, p = 0.48). In-hospital mortality was 2% in both groups (p = 1.00). No difference in net clinical adverse events or ischemic or bleeding complications was detected between the 2 groups. Bivalirudin reduced both ischemic and bleeding events in femoral-treated patients, but no such clinical benefit was observed in the radial-treated patients. In conclusion, as periprocedural PCI bleeding avoidance strategies have become paramount to optimize the clinical benefit, the interaction between bivalirudin and radial approach deserves additional investigation.