Aims: The optimal duration of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in patients at high bleeding risk (HBR) is still debated. The current study, using the totality of existing evidence, evaluated the impact of an abbreviated DAPT regimen in HBR patients.Methods and results: A systematic review and meta-analysis was performed to search randomized clinical trials comparing abbreviated [i.e. very-short (1 month) or short (3 months)] with standard (≥6 months) DAPT in HBR patients without indication for oral anticoagulation. A total of 11 trials, including 9006 HBR patients, were included. Abbreviated DAPT reduced major or clinically relevant non-major bleeding [risk ratio (RR): 0.76, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.61–0.94; I2 = 28%], major bleeding (RR: 0.80, 95% CI: 0.64–0.99, I2 = 0%), and cardiovascular mortality (RR: 0.79, 95% CI: 0.65–0.95, I2 = 0%) compared with standard DAPT. No difference in all-cause mortality, major adverse cardiovascular events, myocardial infarction, or stent thrombosis was observed. Results were consistent, irrespective of HBR definition and clinical presentation.Conclusion: In HBR patients undergoing PCI, a 1- or 3-month abbreviated DAPT regimen was associated with lower bleeding and cardiovascular mortality, without increasing ischaemic events, compared with a ≥6-month DAPT regimen.Study registration: PROSPERO registration number CRD42021284004

BACKGROUND: Accurate bleeding risk stratification after percutaneous coronary intervention is important for treatment individualization. However, there is still an unmet need for a more precise and standardized identification of patients at high bleeding risk. We derived and validated a novel bleeding risk score by augmenting the Predicting Bleeding Complications in Patients Undergoing Stent Implantation and Subsequent Dual Antiplatelet Therapy (PRECISE-DAPT) score with the Academic Research Consortium for High Bleeding Risk (ARC-HBR) criteria. METHODS: The derivation cohort comprised 29 188 patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention, of whom 1136 (3.9%) had Bleeding Academic Research Consortium (BARC) 3 or 5 bleeding at 1 year, from 4 contemporary real-world registries and the XIENCE V USA trial. The PRECISE-DAPT score was refitted with a Fine-Gray model in the derivation cohort and extended with the ARC-HBR criteria. The primary outcome was BARC 3 or 5 bleeding within 1 year. Independent predictors of BARC 3 or 5 bleeding were selected at multivariable analysis ( P <0.01). The discrimination of the score was internally assessed with apparent validation and cross-validation. The score was externally validated in 4578 patients from the MASTER DAPT trial (Management of High Bleeding Risk Patients Post Bioresorbable Polymer Coated Stent Implantation With an Abbreviated Versus Prolonged DAPT Regimen) and 5970 patients from the STOPDAPT-2 (Short and Optimal Duration of Dual Antiplatelet Therapy-2) total cohort. RESULTS: The PRECISE-HBR score (age, estimated glomerular filtration rate, hemoglobin, white blood cell count, previous bleeding, oral anticoagulation, and ARC-HBR criteria) showed an area under the curve (AUC) for 1-year BARC 3 or 5 bleeding of 0.73 (95% CI, 0.71–0.74) at apparent validation, 0.72 (95% CI, 0.70–0.73) at cross-validation, 0.74 (95% CI, 0.68–0.80) in MASTER DAPT, and 0.73 (95% CI, 0.66–0.79) in STOPDAPT-2, with superior discrimination compared with PRECISE-DAPT (cross-validation: ΔAUC, 0.01; P =0.02; MASTER DAPT: ΔAUC, 0.05; P =0.004; STOPDAPT-2: ΔAUC, 0.02; P =0.20) and other risk scores. In the derivation cohort, a cutoff of 23 points identified 11 414 patients (39.1%) with a 1-year BARC 3 or 5 bleeding risk ≥4%. An alternative version of the score, including acute myocardial infarction on admission instead of white blood cell count, showed similar predictive ability. CONCLUSIONS: The PRECISE-HBR score is a contemporary, simple 7-item risk score to predict bleeding after percutaneous coronary intervention, offering a moderate improvement in discrimination over multiple existing scores. Further evaluation is required to assess its impact on clinical practice.

Older patients are underrepresented in prospective studies and randomized clinical trials of acute coronary syndromes (ACS). Over the last decade, a few specific trials have been conducted in this population, allowing more evidence-based management. Older adults are a heterogeneous, complex, and high-risk group whose management requires a multidimensional clinical approach beyond coronary anatomic variables. This review focuses on available data informing evidence-based interventional and pharmacological approaches for older adults with ACS, including guideline-directed management. Overall, an invasive approach appears to demonstrate a better benefit–risk ratio compared to a conservative one across the ACS spectrum, even considering patients’ clinical complexity and multiple comorbidities. Conversely, more powerful strategies of antithrombotic therapy for secondary prevention have been associated with increased bleeding events and no benefit in terms of mortality reduction. An interdisciplinary evaluation with geriatric assessment should always be considered to achieve a holistic approach and optimize any treatment on the basis of the underlying biological vulnerability.

Aims: To summarize the totality of evidence validating the Predicting Bleeding Complications in Patients Undergoing Stent Implantation and Subsequent Dual Antiplatelet Therapy (PRECISE-DAPT) score, ascertaining its aggregate discrimination and validation power in multiple population subsets. Methods and results: We searched electronic databases from 2017 (PRECISE-DAPT proposal) up to March 2023 for studies that reported the occurrence of out-of-hospital bleedings according to the PRECISE-DAPT score in patients receiving DAPT following percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Pooled odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) were used as summary statistics and were calculated using a random-effects model. Primary and secondary endpoints were the occurrence of any and major bleeding, respectively. A total of 21 studies and 67 283 patients were included; 24.7% of patients (N = 16 603) were at high bleeding risk (PRECISE-DAPT score ≥25), and when compared to those at low bleeding risk, they experienced a significantly higher rate of any out-of-hospital bleeding (OR: 2.71; 95% CI: 2.24–3.29; P-value <0.001) and major bleedings (OR: 3.51; 95% CI: 2.71–4.55; P-value <0.001). Pooling data on c-stat whenever available, the PRECISE-DAPT score showed a moderate discriminative power in predicting major bleeding events at 1 year (pooled c-stat: 0.71; 95% CI: 0.64–0.77). Conclusion: This systematic review and meta-analysis confirms the external validity of the PRECISE-DAPT score in predicting out-of-hospital bleeding outcomes in patients on DAPT following PCI. The moderate discriminative ability highlights the need for future improved risk prediction tools in the field.