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AnticoagulantAn anticoagulant is a substance that prevents coagulation; that is, it stops blood from clotting. A group of pharmaceuticals called anticoagulants can be used in vivo as a medication for thrombotic disorders. Some chemical compounds are used in medical equipment, such as test tubes, blood transfusion bags, and renal dialysis equipment. They also have military applications, whereby their introduction into the wounds of enemy soldiers will make their treatment significantly more difficult. Additional recommended knowledge
As medicationsAnticoagulants are given to people to stop thrombosis (blood clotting inappropriately in the blood vessels). This is useful in primary and secondary prevention of deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, myocardial infarctions and strokes in those who are predisposed. Vitamin K antagonistsThe oral anticoagulants are a class of pharmaceuticals that act by antagonizing the effects of vitamin K. Examples include warfarin. It is important to note that they take at least 48 to 72 hours for the anticoagulant effect to develop fully. In cases when any immediate effect is required, heparin must be given concomitantly. Generally, these anticoagulants are used to treat patients with deep-vein thrombosis (DVT), pulmonary embolism (PE), atrial fibrillation (AF), and mechanical prosthetic heart valves. Adverse effectsPatients aged 80 years or more may be especially susceptible to bleeding complications with a rate of 13 bleeds per 100 person-years.[1] These oral anticoagulants are used widely as poisons for mammalian pests, especially rodents. (For details, see rodenticide and warfarin.) Available agentsThe most important oral anticoagulants are:
Heparin and derivative substancesHeparin is a biological substance, usually made from pig intestines. It works by activating antithrombin III, which blocks thrombin from clotting blood. Heparin can be used in vivo (by injection), and also in vitro to prevent blood or plasma clotting in or on medical devices. Vacutainer brand test tubes containing heparin are usually colored green. Low molecular weight heparinLow molecular weight heparin is a more highly processed product that is useful as it does not require monitoring of the APTT coagulation parameter (it has more predictable plasma levels) and has fewer side effects. Synthetic pentasaccharide inhibitors of factor Xa
Direct thrombin inhibitorsAnother type of anticoagulant is the direct thrombin inhibitor.[2] Current members of this class include argatroban, lepirudin, and bivalirudin. An oral direct thrombin inhibitor, ximelagatran (Exanta®) was denied approval by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in September 2004 [1] and was pulled from the market entirely in February 2006 after reports of severe liver damage and heart attacks. [2] Anticoagulants outside the bodyLaboratory instruments, test tubes, blood transfusion bags, and medical and surgical equipment will get clogged up and become nonoperational if blood is allowed to clot. Chemicals can be added to stop blood clotting. Apart from heparin, most of these chemicals work by binding calcium ions, preventing the coagulation proteins from using them.
For the meaning of more colors, see Vacutainer#including coagulants. References
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This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Anticoagulant". A list of authors is available in Wikipedia. |