Hematology Times
|
|
Thrombosis and HemostasisTicagrelor beats clopidogrel, eliminates genetic testing
 A recent study published online first in Lancet shows that regardless of the presence of genetic variations, ticagrelor is better than clopidogrel in anticlotting treatment. Using ticagrelor to treat patients with acute coronary syndromes eliminates the need for genetic testing that is considered necessary to avoid a poor response when using clopidogrel. The article was written by Lars Wallentin, MD, PhD, of Uppsala University in Sweden, and colleagues. ... [Read Article] Genetic variation reduces effectiveness of clopidogrel
Rows of chromosomes
making up a genome A recent study found that patients with the gene ABCB1 variation TT had a 72% increased risk of death, heart attack, or stroke while being treated with clopidogrel. Previous studies have identified CYP2C19 as a genetic variation affecting the metabolism of clopidogrel. Neither of these variations has been found to affect another anticlotting drug, prasugrel. The results of the study were published online first in Lancet. ... [Read Article] New agent proves superior in VTE prophylaxis
Michael Huo, MD
A new trial supports previous research suggesting the novel agent dabigatran is superior to the gold standard in venous thromboembolism (VTE) prophylaxis.The RE-NOVATE II study compared dabigatran and enoxaparin as VTE prophylaxis in patients who underwent hip replacement. The agents demonstrated comparable efficacy with regard to the total incidence of VTE and all-cause mortality, but dabigatran proved twice as effective as enoxaparin at decreasing the incidence of major VTE and VTE-related mortality. ... [Read Article] Prophylactic statin use reduces risk of PE or DVT
 Researchers at the University of Connecticut found that patients with all types of venous thromboembolism (VTE), including deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE), benefit from the use of statins. The team of researchers looked at 10 studies of more than 900,000 patients to evaluate the effect of statins in the prevention of VTE. The results of the study were presented at the American Thoracic Society 2010 International Conference held in New Orleans on May 14-19. ... [Read Article] Researchers uncover new facets of fibrin
Fibrin
Researchers in the Netherlands were able to learn how fibrin maintains such strong elastic resilience and hope to use this information to explain what causes clot failure. In Georgia, another group of researchers found a better molecule to inhibit fibrin formation and prevent clotting. The synthetic anticoagulant has 10-fold higher affinity for connecting “holes” to “knobs” on fibrin molecules than current synthetics. The articles were published this month in Biophysical Journal and Blood, respectively. ... [Read Article] |
|