Prevention of thrombosis in arteries: novel approaches

A number of drugs such as unfractionated heparin, oral anticoagulants, and agents inhibiting platelet function, are being used in the prevention of arterial thrombosis; novel antithrombotic substances are in the making. Among the latter are low-mol-wt heparin and semisynthetic heparin analogs, unfractionated and low-mol-wt heparin covalently complexed or not with anti-thrombin III, pyridoxal phosphate, scavengers of free radicals, synthetic inhibitors of serine proteases, and stimulators of endogenous fibrinolysis.