Clinical Study of Warfarin Versus Aspirin for Thromboembolism Prevention in Patients With Nonvalvular Atrial Fibrillation

The objective of this study is to compare the efficacies and complications of warfarin and aspirin for preventing thromboembolism associated with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation(NVAF),and explore an optimal intensity of warfarin therapy for Chinese.126 patients were enrolled with NVAF,who were randomly allocated into warfarin group(warfarin 1~3 mg per day) and aspirin group (aspirin 200 mg per day) by 2∶1 ratio and to all patients routine treatment were given . The patients in warfarin group were monitored international normalized ratio(INR) carefully and INR was controlled in 1.6~2.5. All patients were followed up 18 months in outpatient department.The rate of ischemic stroke and complication were compared between the two groups.Results:114 patients accomlished the follow-up, including 76 patients in warfarin group and 38 in aspirin group.10.53% patients didn′t finish the follow-up.During the 18 months of follow-up,the incidence of ischemic strokes was 2.63% in warfarin group and 15.79% in aspirin group(P0.05).Hemorrhagic complications occurred in 12 patients in warfarin group and none in aspirin group.Gastrointestinal side effects occurred in 4 patients in aspirin group.The rate of complications was low in both groups(15.79% in warfarin group and 10.52% in aspirin group) and did not differ significantly(P0.05). Conclusion: Warfarin(INR 1.6-2.5) seems to be more effective than aspirin in the prevention of throboembolism in patients with NVAF.