| First-ever Anticoagulation Experts’ (ACE) Summit organized by Bayer Pharmaceuticals to launch rivaroxaban and aspirin indication for patients diagnosed with CAD/PAD |
Team Xarelto of Bayer Pharmaceuticals after the first successful Anti-coagulation Experts’ Summit in the Philippines
Taguig City, April 3, 2020 – Filipino patients suffering from coronary artery disease or peripheral artery disease (CAD/PAD) may no longer need to look further to reduce their risk of major adverse cardiovascular events as a lower dosage of rivaroxaban has been introduced in the country for the new indication along with aspirin. This indication was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last year and now made available starting this month.
To celebrate this milestone, Bayer Pharmaceuticals division recently organized the 1st Anticoagulation Experts’ Summit at The Peninsula Manila Hotel, which was attended by 126 top caliber vascular cardiologists, interventional cardiologists, and neurologists from different health institutions across the country.
A lineup of speakers was fielded to discuss the highlights and different benefits of rivaroxaban across different indications, and this was culminated by Dr. Christopher Hammett’s presentation of the COMPASS study showing that combined treatment of rivaroxaban 2.5 mg twice daily and acetylsalicylic acid (aspirin) 100 mg once daily resulted in a significant reduction in major cardiovascular events, including myocardial infarction, stroke, and cardiovascular death. It demonstrated lower risk of occurrence of such incidents compared to taking rivaroxaban alone or acetylsalicylic acid by itself. It is notable that the COMPASS study was stopped 1 year ahead of expectations in February 2017 due to overwhelming efficacy from the said combined treatment.
Dr. Hammett is an interventional cardiologist at the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital in Australia. He is a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians and the Cardiac Society of Australia and New Zealand. He has been involved in all the landmark trials of low-dose rivaroxaban.
Other doctor experts who presented in the evening event were Dr. John Añonuevo and Dr. David Raymund Salvador, while the program was moderated by Dr. Myla Gloria Supe.
In 2017, deaths attributed to coronary heart diseases totaled 84,120, representing 15% of total deaths in the Philippines. On the other hand, mortality from cerebrovascular diseases was pegged at 59,774 in the same year. This included stroke, which further puts patients at risk of recurrence, making stroke a top health burden. People at risk for cardiovascular disease or stroke are prescribed with a non-Vitamin K antagonist anticoagulant (NOAC) as a preventive approach.
The newly launched CAD/PAD indication for rivaroxaban puts it in a unique position in the Philippines since currently, no other NOAC in the market can claim for this same benefit to Filipino patients.
Team Xarelto of Bayer Pharmaceuticals after the first successful Anti-coagulation Experts’ Summit in the Philippines
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