Warfarin News and Research

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Warfarin is a drug that prevents blood from clotting. It belongs to the family of drugs called anticoagulants (blood thinners).

Voice response system useful for monitoring anticoagulant patients

Interactive voice response systems may help improve monitoring of patients taking anticoagulants such as warfarin while reducing the workload of clinical staff, found a study by Ottawa researchers in CMAJ.

27 Apr 2009

FDA approves Symbyax for treatment-resistant depression

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a new indication for Symbyax (olanzapine and fluoxetine HCl capsules), Eli Lilly and Company has announced.

23 Mar 2009

3 genes determine right warfarin dose

Researchers at Uppsala University, together with colleagues at the Karolinska Institute and the Sanger Institute, have now found all the genes the determine the dosage of the blood-thinning drug warfarin.

22 Mar 2009

Gleevec reduces risk of cancer returning in patients with life-threatening gastrointestinal stromal tumors

Data published online and in an upcoming print issue of The Lancet show that Gleevec (imatinib mesylate) tablets, when taken after surgery, substantially reduces the rate of recurrence of Kit-positive gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) compared with placebo.

20 Mar 2009

Blood clots after hip and knee replacements

As the number of hip and knee replacements skyrocket into the coming years, patients and orthopaedic surgeons need to work together to evaluate and assess a potentially fatal complication - blood clots.

26 Feb 2009

Kidney disease affects response to anticoagulant drug warfarin

Patients with reduced kidney function require lower doses of the anticoagulant drug warfarin, and may need closer monitoring to avoid serious bleeding complications, suggests a study in the April 2009 issue of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology ( JASN ).

20 Feb 2009

Optimizing dosage of blood-thinning drug warfarin

In a large-scale study and an upcoming clinical trial, scientists supported by the National Institutes of Health address one of the trickiest issues in prescribing medicine - how to quickly optimize each patient's dosage of the common blood-thinning drug warfarin.

20 Feb 2009

Genetic testing not cost-effective in guiding initial dosing of blood-thinner warfarin

New analyses led by the University of Cincinnati (UC) show that genetic testing used to guide initial dosing of the blood-thinner warfarin may not be cost-effective for typical patients with atrial fibrillation but may be for patients at higher risk for major bleeding.

19 Jan 2009

Savella - Fibromyalgia treatment approved by FDA

Forest Laboratories, Inc. and Cypress Bioscience, Inc. have announced that Savella (milnacipran HCl), a selective serotonin and norepinephrine dual reuptake inhibitor, was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the management of fibromyalgia.

19 Jan 2009

Seniors warned about mixing OTC and prescription drugs

According to researchers in the United States about 2.2 million seniors put themselves at high risk for drug interactions - they say many non-prescription medication, which are bought over-the-counter (OTC) can produce a harmful drug interactions.

29 Dec 2008

New approaches to prevent blood clots

The largest study ever to examine the preventive use of blood-thinning medication to help prevent deadly blood clots in patients with cancer undergoing chemotherapy presented December 7 during the 50th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology in San Francisco, CA.

8 Dec 2008

Daiichi Sankyo starts trial of investigational factor Xa inhibitor for atrial fibrillation

Daiichi Sankyo Company, Limited, has announced that it has initiated its pivotal Phase III trial for DU-176b, an investigational oral Factor Xa inhibitor, in patients with atrial fibrillation. DU-176b is being developed solely by Daiichi Sankyo.

7 Dec 2008

Generics as good as brand-name drugs when treating heart diseases

Contrary to the perception of some patients and physicians, there is no evidence that brand-name drugs are clinically superior to their generic counterparts, according to an article in the December 3 issue of JAMA, which examined studies comparing the effectiveness of generic vs. brand-name drugs for treating cardiovascular diseases.

3 Dec 2008

Liver disease tackled with dedicated unit at Imperial College London

Liver disease death rates are rising in the UK, in contrast to other common diseases such as heart disease and cancer, and the new Robert Hesketh Hepatology Clinical Research Facility aims to provide care and develop new therapies to reverse this trend.

1 Dec 2008

New plan to tackle off-label prescribing

Physicians and policy-makers know that drugs are frequently prescribed to treat certain diseases despite a lack of FDA approval - a practice known as off-label prescribing.

24 Nov 2008

Rivaroxaban shows promise in patients with acute coronary syndrome

Researchers reported on a study of a new oral anti-clotting agent - rivaroxaban - designed to identify doses that would be safe to test in subsequent Phase III efficacy and safety trials. The results of ATLAS ACS-TIMI 46 were presented as a late-breaking clinical trial at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2008.

11 Nov 2008

Data expands the clinical utility of deCODE tests for heart attack, atrial fibrillation and stroke

Several presentations by deCODE genetics scientists and independent researchers at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions 2008 being held at the New Orleans Convention Center from November 8 to12 are expected to expand upon the clinical utility of evaluating individual risk of heart attack, or atrial fibrillation and stroke, respectively, by measuring the genetic markers that are the basis of the deCODE MI and deCODE AF tests.

11 Nov 2008

Tiny hearts may have big problems with complementary medicine

Giving supplement such as herbs, vitamins, and other natural health products to children taking Warfarin for congenital heart defects could increase their risk of clots, bleeding, and other complications, nurse practitioner Mary Bauman and Dr. Patti Massicotte told the 2008 Canadian Cardiovascular Congress, co-hosted by the Heart and Stroke Foundation and the Canadian Cardiovascular Society.

28 Oct 2008

Improved communication about medications reduces complications among patients using common blood thinner

Patients who report receiving written and verbal instructions on the proper way to take the blood thinner warfarin are significantly less likely to suffer the serious gastrointestinal and brain bleeding problems that are associated with misuse of the drug, according to new research from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.

27 Oct 2008

Warfarin linked to increased bleeding in brain

A new study shows that people who take the commonly used blood thinning drug warfarin may have larger amounts of bleeding in the brain and increased risk of death if they suffer a hemorrhagic stroke. The study is published in the September 30, 2008, print issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

29 Sep 2008