Warfarin and Antiplatelet Vascular Evaluation

Atherosclerosis is the underlying cause of peripheral vascular disease (PVD) of the lower extremities, and leads to intermittent claudication, leg ulceration and gangrene. More importantly, symptomatic PVD is an ominous sign that widespread atherosclerosis is present and patients with this condition suffer a threefold increase in myocardial infarction (MI), stroke, and CV death. These CV events are a consequence of rupture of an atherosclerotic plaque, which leads to platelet activation and thrombin generation, thrombus formation and occlusion of a critical blood vessel. Antiplatelet therapy has been clearly demonstrated to reduce major CV events. It is also reasonable to expect that this process may be further attenuated by the addition of an anti-thrombin agent (such as warfarin) in combination with antiplatelet agents.

WAVE is a large, international, multicentre, randomized clinical trial in high-risk PVD patients to evaluate the additional benefit of moderate intensity warfarin (target INR of 2.4-3.0) to antiplatelet therapy compared to antiplatelet therapy alone in reducing serious cardiovascular events.

There are currently 80 active centres following participants in Canada, Poland, Australia, Hungary, China, Ukraine, and the Netherlands. Following randomization to one of the two treatment groups, participants will require clinic or phone follow-up visits every 3 months for 2.5 or 3.5 years. For participants on warfarin, INRs will be measured monthly or more frequently if required. For participants who stop warfarin therapy prematurely, every attempt will be made to have them restart it