New Blood-Thinner Shifts Responsibility To Patients
I recently came across a very important blog post on the use of the novel new blood-thinner, dabigatran (Pradaxa).
Fellow Kentucky cardiologist, and frequent TheHeart.org contributor, Dr. Melissa Walton-Shirley wrote this very detailed case presentation involving a cantankerous non-compliant rural patient with AF (atrial fibrillation) that sustained a stroke while “taking” dabigatran.
Dr. Walton-Shirley details the very commonly done procedure of cardioversion (shock) for AF. As she clearly points out, the most important safety feature of shocking AF back to regular rhythm entails adequate blood thinning before and after the procedure. Thin blood prevents the possibility of clots dislodging after restoring normal contraction to the top chambers of the heart (atria).
Herein lies the rub with dabigatran, and the two soon-to-be-approved non-warfarin blood-thinning agents, apixaban and rivaroxaban. In the past, Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Dr John M*