Author`s Reply.

To the Editor,

We thank the authors of the letter for their valuable comments. In our study entitled “Comparison of health-related quality of life among patients using novel oral anticoagulants or warfarin for non-valvular atrial fibrillation,” published online in Anatol J Cardiol 2015 Jul 14. (Epub ahead of print), we mainly focused on the oral anticoagulant-type-related difference in the quality of life and emotional status (1). Although, many widely used treatments in cardiology may have effects on the psychological condition (2), our study did not reveal any significant difference between novel oral anticoagulant (NOAC) and warfarin users because of the prescriptions of calcium channel blockers (NOAC 47.5% vs. warfarin 44%, p=0.655) and beta-blockers (NOAC 89% vs. warfarin 83.5%, p=0.282). In addition, patients with known thyroid dysfunction were already excluded from the study because of the potential coexistence of depression and anxiety as well as the impaired quality of life in such population. When the patients were evaluated according to the atrial fibrillation (AF) duration, the median AF duration did not significantly differ between the study groups [warfarin 36 (21–56) months vs. NOAC 34 (20–60) months, p=0.153]. Although, in the beginning, we did not assess the patients according to the presence of prior electrical cardioversion, additional analyses showed that none of the patients underwent electrical cardioversion before the study recruitment. Finally, we agree with the comment that the data mentioned above should be stated in the text for precise evaluation of the disease- and the drug-related alterations in emotional status and quality of life.