Rivaroxaban With or Without Aspirin for the Secondary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease: Clinical Implications of the COMPASS Trial

Abstract

The COMPASS trial compared the impact of the selective direct factor Xa inhibitor, rivaroxaban, as monotherapy or in combination with aspirin on major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) in patients with stable atherosclerotic disease. Patients treated with rivaroxaban 2.5 mg twice daily in combination with aspirin experienced fewer cardiovascular events but more bleeding complications than those who received aspirin monotherapy. In contrast, a higher dose of rivaroxaban (5 mg twice daily) and aspirin produced no clinical benefit and continued to be associated with greater bleeding rates than aspirin. Examining this study in the context of other trials of anticoagulant therapy in atherosclerotic vascular disease, this review attempts to place the role of very low-dose rivaroxaban in clinical context and highlights areas for future research.