[Bridging, interruption and switching of anticoagulants in trauma surgery]

Patients under long-term administration of vitamin K antagonists may require temporary interruption of anticoagulation therapy for invasive procedures or trauma surgery. Due to the long half-life of these substances bridging therapy with anticoagulants having a shorter half-life may become necessary. In this situation the risk of bleeding due to the intervention and the risk of thromboembolism due the underlying disease must be assessed. Low molecular weight heparins (LMWHs) are considered to be the medication of choice for bridging anticoagulation, mainly due to practical reasons and as they do not require coagulation monitoring and dose adjustment out of hospital treatment is feasible. Low molecular weight heparins are not authorized for the indication of bridging anticoagulation, however, on the basis of recent studies on large patient cohorts, the evidence of efficacy and safety is significantly better for LMWHs than for unfractionated heparin. New oral anticoagulants will soon become available for stroke prevention in patients with atrial fibrillation and for treatment of venous thromboembolism. Due to the shorter half-lives these compounds will no longer require bridging anticoagulation. However, the trauma surgeon should be familiar with the dosing regimens for different indications in order to adequately decide about the preoperative cessation and the perioperative pause of these anticoagulants.