TY  - JOUR
AU  - Chen, Wenfei
AU  - Chen, Jiana
AU  - Jiang, Shaojun
AU  - Wang, Chunhua
AU  - Zhang, Jinhua
PY  - 2024
DA  - 2024/7/29
TI  - Web-Based Warfarin Management (Alfalfa App) Versus Traditional Warfarin Management: Multicenter Prospective Cohort Study
JO  - J Med Internet Res
SP  - e46319
VL  - 26
KW  - warfarin
KW  - telemedicine
KW  - smart phone application
KW  - anti-coagulation management
KW  - management
KW  - cohort study
KW  - application
KW  - chronic disease
KW  - support
KW  - effectiveness
KW  - online model
KW  - patient management
AB  - Background: Poor anticoagulation management of warfarin may lead to patient admission, prolonged hospital stays, and even death due to anticoagulation-related adverse events. Traditional non–web-based outpatient clinics struggle to provide ideal anticoagulation management services for patients, and there is a need to explore a safer, more effective, and more convenient mode of warfarin management. Objective: This study aimed to compare differences in the quality of anticoagulation management and clinical adverse events between a web-based management model (via a smartphone app) and the conventional non–web-based outpatient management model. Methods: This study is a prospective cohort research that includes multiple national centers. Patients meeting the nadir criteria were split into a web-based management group using the Alfalfa app or a non–web-based management group with traditional outpatient management, and they were then monitored for a 6-month follow-up period to collect coagulation test results and clinical events. The effectiveness and safety of the 2 management models were assessed by the following indicators: time in therapeutic range (TTR), bleeding events, thromboembolic events, all-cause mortality events, cumulative event rates, and the distribution of the international normalized ratio (INR). Results: This national multicenter cohort study enrolled 522 patients between June 2019 and May 2021, with 519 (99%) patients reaching the follow-up end point, including 260 (50%) in the non–web-based management group and 259 (50%) in the web-based management group. There were no observable differences in baseline characteristics between the 2 patient groups. The web-based management group had a significantly higher TTR than the non–web-based management group (82.4% vs 71.6%, P<.001), and a higher proportion of patients received effective anticoagulation management (81.2% vs 63.5%, P<.001). The incidence of minor bleeding events in the non–web-based management group was significantly higher than that in the web-based management group (12.1% vs 6.6%, P=.048). Between the 2 groups, there was no statistically significant difference in the incidence of severe bleeding and thromboembolic and all-cause death events. In addition, compared with the non–web-based management group, the web-based management group had a lower proportion of INR in the extreme subtreatment range (17.6% vs 21.3%) and severe supertreatment range (0% vs 0.8%) and a higher proportion in the treatment range (50.4% vs 43.1%), with statistical significance. Conclusions: Compared with traditional non–web-based outpatient management, web-based management via the Alfalfa app may be more beneficial because it can enhance patient anticoagulation management quality, lower the frequency of small bleeding events, and improve INR distribution. 
SN  - 1438-8871
UR  - https://www.jmir.org/2024/1/e46319
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2196/46319
UR  - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39073869
DO  - 10.2196/46319
ID  - info:doi/10.2196/46319
ER  -