Anticoagulation Use and Clinical Outcomes Following Major Bleeding on Dabigatran or Warfarin in Atrial Fibrillation

Abstract

Abstract Background and Purpose— Little is known about the clinical outcomes associated with posthemorrhage anticoagulation resumption for atrial fibrillation. This study had 2 objectives: first, to evaluate anticoagulation use after a first major bleed on warfarin or dabigatran and, second, to compare effectiveness and safety outcomes between patients discontinuing anticoagulation after a major bleed and patients restarting warfarin or dabigatran. Methods— Using 2010 to 2012 Medicare Part D data, we identified atrial fibrillation patients who experienced a major bleeding event while using warfarin (n=1135) or dabigatran (n=404) and categorized them by their posthemorrhage use of anticoagul..