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Escalated Single Platelet Inhibition for One Month Plus NOAC in Patients With Atrial Fibrillation and ACS Undergoing PCI

Escalated Single Platelet Inhibition for One Month Plus Direct Oral Anticoagulation in Patients With Atrial Fibrillation and acUte coRonary Syndrome Undergoing percutaneoUS Coronary Intervention

Status
Completed
Phases
Phase 4
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT04981041
Acronym
EPIDAURUS
Enrollment
602
Registered
2021-07-28
Start date
2021-12-16
Completion date
2026-05-30
Last updated
2026-06-02

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Acute Coronary Syndrome, Atrial Fibrillation

Brief summary

The selection of the optimal antithrombotic therapy in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (AF) and acute coronary syndrome (ACS) undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is challenging. Until recently, triple antithrombotic therapy (TAT) consisting in Aspirin plus Clopidogrel plus OAC was considered the treatment of choice. While efficiently preventing ischaemic events, TAT is associated with an increase in bleeding complications. Therefore, in the past years several randomized controlled trials challenged TAT by comparing a triple antithrombotic therapy (TAT) regimen based on Vitamin K antagonists (VKA) to a dual antithrombotic regimen (DAT) based on non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants (NOACs) and P2Y12-inhibitors, mainly Clopidogrel in patients with AF undergoing PCI. However, approximately 30-40% of patients show low response to Clopidogrel and are not adequately protected against ischaemic events, in particular when presenting with ACS. This is supported by a recent meta-analysis reporting that TAT compared to DAT is associated with lower rates of stent thrombosis within 30 days after PCI. It is therefore reasonable to assume that a more potent platelet inhibition within the first month after PCI might reduce the rate of ischaemic complications observed in AF patients undergoing PCI, when receiving DAT. Moreover, a subsequent de-escalation to a less potent platelet inhibition one month after PCI might prevent an increase in bleeding complications. In EPIDAURUS the investigators will therefore test the hypothesis that DAT using NOAC plus an escalated antiplatelet therapy with a potent P2Y12-inhibitor for one month followed by Clopidogrel reduces ischaemic events without a relevant increase in bleeding complications in patients with AF and ACS undergoing PCI compared to standard DAT with NOAC plus Clopidogrel.

Interventions

Escalated antiplatelet therapy with a potent P2Y12- inhibitor for one month in patients with atrial fibrillation and indication for treatment non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants (NOACs)

DRUGClopidogrel

Clopidogrel and NOAC

Sponsors

Ludwig-Maximilians - University of Munich
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
SINGLE (Outcomes Assessor)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* Written informed consent * Age ≥ 18 years * Atrial fibrillation requiring oral anticoagulation * STEMI or NSTEMI (biomarker positive acute coronary syndrome) and successful completion of PCI (randomization will take place within 24h after successful PCI)

Exclusion criteria

* Chronic renal insufficiency with glomerular filtration rate \< 15 ml/min/1.73m2 * History of ischaemic stroke or transient ischaemic attack (both contraindications for Prasugrel) and history of intracranial bleeding (contraindication for Ticagrelor) * Contraindication for Clopidogrel or Aspirin * Contraindication for P2Y12-inhibitor * Severe chronic liver disease (Child-Pugh C) * Indication for oral anticoagulation with Vitamin K antagonists * Moderate to severe mitral stenosis or mechanical heart valve * Any bleeding BARC type ≥ 2 within the last 4 weeks before index procedure * Pregnancy or lactation * Inability to cooperate with the protocol requirements * Life expectancy \< 6 months * Participation in another investigational drug study * Previous enrolment in this study * For women of childbearing potential no negative pregnancy test and no agree to use a reliable method of birth control during the study * Previous treatment with GP IIb/IIIa inhibitors within the last 12 hours * A known genetic disorder involved in the metabolism of the study medication

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Major ischaemic events defined as the composite of all-cause mortality, myocardial infarction, definite or probable stent thrombosis, ischaemic stroke systemic thromboembolism and urgent revascularization6 weekssuperiority test
Death and Bleeding type 2 or higher according to the Bleeding Academic Research Consortium (BARC) criteria6 weeksnon-inferiority test

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
All-cause mortality6 weeks
Myocardial infarction6 weeks
Definite or probable stent thrombosis6 weeks
Ischaemic stroke6 weeks
Systemic thromboembolism6 weeks
Cardiovascular mortality6 weeks
Bleeding type 2 or more according to the Bleeding Academic Research Consortium6 weekssuperiority testing
Urgent revascularization6 weeks
Unplanned hospitalization due to acute heart failure or acute coronary syndrome6 months

Countries

Austria, Germany

Contacts

PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORSteffen Massberg, MD

LMU Klinikum

PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORKonstantinos Rizas, MD

LMU Klinikum

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Aug 31, 2026