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Updated: Oct 18, 2026

The Nijmegen Hemostasis Assay: Simultaneous Fluorogenic Measurement of Thrombin and Plasmin Generation in a Single Well
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The Nijmegen Hemostasis Assay: Simultaneous Fluorogenic Measurement of Thrombin and Plasmin Generation in a Single Well

Published on: February 27, 2026

The Narrow Therapeutic Index of Thrombin Inhibition: Implications for Newer Antithrombotic Therapies

Loscalzo1

  • 1Whitaker Cardiovascular Institute and Evans Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts.

Journal of Thrombosis and Thrombolysis
|January 1, 1997
PubMed

Recent trials have compared direct thrombin inhibitors with heparin as adjunctive therapy with thrombolysis for acute myocardial infarction or as antithrombotic therapy following coronary angioplasty. The results suggest that these agents are comparable to heparin in terms of efficacy, and can be safely administered; however, like that of heparin, the therapeutic index of direct thrombin inhibitors is narrow. Thus, one must excercise caution in trial design and data interpretation from studies of these antithrombotic agents in patients with acute coronary syndromes. The potential applicability of these agents to patients with acute coronary syndromes, the appropriate dosing regimen, and the patient population in whom the therapeutic index is optimal all await further study.

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