OBJECTIVES

: Treatment satisfaction as perceived by patients is known to be associated with long-term treatment adherence/persistence and real-world treatment outcomes. The objective of this study was to assess treatment satisfaction reported by atrial fibrillation (AF) patients receiving oral anticoagulation treatment (OAC) with either vitamin-K-antagonists (VKAs) or non-VKA oral anticoagulants (NOACs) based on the Anti-Clot Treatment Scale (ACTS).

METHODS

: Randomly selected GP/cardiologist study sites in Germany, Sweden, and Switzerland were asked to enroll AF patients receiving either VKAs or NOACs for at least three months into this cross-sectional study. In addition to documentation of clinical data by study physicians, patients were interviewed based on a written questionnaire at the time of inclusion. Treatment burden/benefit was assessed by the ACTS, which is a 15-item validated questionnaire assessing satisfaction with anticoagulation treatment.

RESULTS

: Reported ACTS burden scale reached a mean of 18.2 (range: 13-58; higher values indicating higher burden). Reported treatment burden was significantly higher for patients treated with VKAs versus NOACs (19.1 versus 17.2, p<0.001). In a multivariate analysis, the following independent variables were associated with higher ACTS-treatment burden: VKA treatment, younger age, lower BMI and lower physical/mental health (SF-36). Furthermore, Swedish patients reported higher burden.

Reported ACTS benefit scale reached a mean of 8.5 (range: 4-20; higher values indicating less benefit). Based on applied multivariate regression model, no significant explanatory factors of the ACTS treatment benefit could be identified with one exception: Swedish patients reported less treatment benefit, compared to patients in Germany/Switzerland.

CONCLUSIONS

: Anticoagulation treatment with VKAs was associated with a higher treatment burden as measured by the ACTS, in comparison to NOAC treatment. There were no differences between perceived OAC benefits if VKAs and NOACs are compared.