Background: The TIMI-AF score predicts poor outcomes in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) and guides selection of anticoagulant therapy by identifying clinical benefit of direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) or vitamin K antagonists (VKA).
Hypothesis: Our objective was to determine the ability to predict cardiovascular events according to the TIMI-AF score in a real-world population.
Methods: Retrospective observational study of VKA-naïve patients with AF was seen at a cardiology outpatient clinic in Spain between November 2012 and August 2014. We recorded adverse events (myocardial infarction, systemic embolism or stroke, major bleeding, and death).
Results: The study population comprised of 426 patients (50.7% men, mean age, 69 ± 14 years). The TIMI-AF score identified 372 patients (87.3%) with a low risk, 50 patients (11.7%) with an intermediate risk, and 4 patients (0.9%) with a high risk. After a mean follow-up of 423.4 ± 200.1 days, 37 patients (9%) experienced an adverse event. Patients with a TIMI-AF score ≥ 7 had a poorer cardiovascular prognosis (HR, 6.1; 95%CI, 3.2-11.7; P < 0.001). The area under the ROC curve of TIMI-AF was 0.755 (95%CI, 0.669-0.840; P < 0.001), which was greater than that of CHA2 DS2 VASc (0.641; 95%CI, 0.559-0.724; P = 0.004), HAS-BLED (0.666; 95%CI, 0.578-0.755; P < 0.001), and SAMeTT2 R2 (0.529; 95%CI, 0.422-0.636; P = 0.565). Similar results were obtained in relation to the net clinical outcome (life-threatening bleeding, disabling stroke, or all-cause mortality).
Conclusions: The TIMI-AF risk score can identify patients who are at greater risk of cardiovascular events and a poor net clinical outcome with a better diagnostic yield than CHA2 DS2 VASc, HAS-BLED, and SAMeTT2 R2 .
Keywords: TIMI-AF score; anticoagulants; atrial fibrillation; cardiovascular prognosis.
© 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.