Abstract
Venous thromboembolism (including deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism) and atrial fibrillation are common conditions in Western countries. The mainstay of treatment and prevention for these diseases is fast-acting anticoagulant drugs such as heparins and vitamin K antagonists. The use of these drugs is, however, complex and demanding for both patients and physicians. Recently, new antithrombotic drugs that act directly by inhibiting activated coagulation factors such as factor X or thrombin have been developed and investigated in phase III clinical trials. The aim of this article is to review: (i) the need to develop new drugs; (ii) their efficacy/safety as demonstrated in clinical trials; (iii) the need for laboratory monitoring and (iv) the direction towards the use of these new drugs in the real-life clinical situation.
© 2012 The Association for the Publication of the Journal of Internal Medicine.
MeSH terms
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Anticoagulants / therapeutic use*
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Atrial Fibrillation / complications*
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Benzimidazoles / pharmacology
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Benzimidazoles / therapeutic use*
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Clinical Trials as Topic
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Clinical Trials, Phase III as Topic
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Dabigatran
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Drugs, Investigational*
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Heparin / therapeutic use
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Humans
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International Normalized Ratio
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Morpholines / pharmacology
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Morpholines / therapeutic use*
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Pyrazoles / pharmacology
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Pyrazoles / therapeutic use*
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Pyridones / pharmacology
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Pyridones / therapeutic use*
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Rivaroxaban
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Stroke / etiology
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Stroke / prevention & control*
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Thiophenes / pharmacology
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Thiophenes / therapeutic use*
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Treatment Outcome
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Venous Thromboembolism / etiology
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Venous Thromboembolism / prevention & control*
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Vitamin K / antagonists & inhibitors
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beta-Alanine / analogs & derivatives*
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beta-Alanine / pharmacology
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beta-Alanine / therapeutic use
Substances
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Anticoagulants
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Benzimidazoles
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Drugs, Investigational
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Morpholines
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Pyrazoles
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Pyridones
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Thiophenes
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beta-Alanine
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Vitamin K
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apixaban
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Heparin
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Rivaroxaban
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Dabigatran