Antiplatelet Prophylaxis vs Anticoagulation
Figure 7 is from a meta-analysis that compared the effect of warfarin versus aspirin.[5] From the results of this nicely done study it can be seen that basically all of the trials found a clear benefit for warfarin compared to antiplatelet (or aspirin) therapy for reduction of risk of stroke.
In aggregate, analysis of all 11 trials of this meta-analysis shows, with a very tight confidence intervals, that the results overwhelmingly favor anticoagulation over antiplatelet therapy for reduction of stroke risk in patients with AFib.
References
Aguilar MI, Hart R, Pearce LA. Oral anticoagulants versus antiplatelet therapy for preventing stroke in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation and no history of stroke or transient ischemic attack. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2007;(3):CD006186.