Summary
Treatment with apixaban versus placebo for 12 months significantly reduced symptomatic
recurrent venous thromboembolism (VTE) or all-cause death without increasing the rate
of major bleeding in the AMPLIFY-EXT trial. This analysis examined the effects of
apixaban versus placebo on the rate of all-cause hospitalisations, time to first hospitalisation,
and predictors of first hospitalisation in patients with VTE enrolled in AMPLIFY-EXT.
Treatment with apixaban 2.5 mg and 5 mg twice daily significantly reduced the rate
of all-cause hospitalisations versus placebo (hazard ratio [95 % confidence interval],
0.64 [0.43, 0.95]; p=0.026 and 0.54 [0.36, 0.82]; p=0.004, respectively). Apixaban
prolonged mean time to first hospitalisation versus placebo by 43 and 49 days for
the 2.5-mg and 5-mg twice-daily groups, respectively. Median length of hospital stay
during the first hospitalisation was longer for placebo than for apixaban 2.5 mg or
5 mg twice daily (7.0, 5.0, and 4.5 days, respectively). Treatment with apixaban was
a significant predictor of lower rates of hospitalisations versus placebo, and severe/moderate
renal impairment was a significant predictor of an increased rate. This study supports
extended use of apixaban for reducing all-cause hospitalisations and extending time
to first hospitalisation in patients with VTE enrolled in AMPLIFY-EXT (www.clinical
trials.gov registration: #NCT00633893).
Keywords
Apixaban - hospitalisation - venous thromboembolism - extended anticoagulation