Increased risk of hematoma with uninterrupted warfarin in patients undergoing implantation of subcutaneous implantable cardioverter defibrillator.

BACKGROUND

The perioperative management of anticoagulation with the use of subcutaneous implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (S-ICD) implantation is still evolving.

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to assess whether it is safe to perform S-ICD implantation with uninterrupted warfarin.

METHODS

This is a multi-center retrospective review of patients undergoing S-ICD implantation between October 1, 2012 and June 30, 2017. Forty-eight patients underwent successful S-ICD implantation during the study period. The most common indication for implantation was primary prevention of sudden cardiac death. In 23 (47.9%) patients, warfarin was continued without any interruption. In 25 (52.1%) patients, warfarin was interrupted prior to implantation. The incidence of clinically significant lateral pocket hematoma was compared in the two groups.

RESULTS

The mean international normalized ratio was 2.0 ± 0.4 in the uninterrupted group and 1.4 ± 0.4 for the interrupted group. A total of seven patients developed a hematoma at the lateral pocket. No patient developed a hematoma at the parasternal pockets. Six patients in the uninterrupted group (26.1%) and one patient in the interrupted group (0.04%) developed a significant lateral pocket hematoma (P = .04). The concomitant use of dual antiplatelet therapy did not increase the risk of hematoma. There was no significant difference between HASBLED and CHA2 DS2 VASc scores between the groups. None of the patients with a hematoma developed infection or required hematoma evacuation.

CONCLUSIONS

The uninterrupted use of warfarin in the perioperative period of S-ICD implantation is associated with an increased risk of lateral pocket hematoma.