New Oral Anticoagulants: Clinical Parameters and Uses in Practice

This article serves as a resource for health care professionals by providing a summary of primary literature and guidelines for use of the available oral anticoagulant agents. The cost vs. efficacy aspects and reversibility of these medications are also addressed.

A PubMed search and Cochrane database review were conducted between June 15 and June 30, 2014, to find appropriate primary literature on each of the new oral anticoagulants. All phase 3 trials for apixaban, rivaroxaban, dabigatran, and edoxaban for the treatment of stroke prevention in atrial fibrillation (AF) and venous thromboembolism (VTE) were included. The American College of Chest Physicians guideline recommendations for stroke prevention in AF and VTE treatment, and the American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology guidelines for AF were reviewed, and pertinent information regarding the new anticoagulants from these guidelines is included in this review. A PubMed search was also used to identify cost-efficacy references and articles on reversibility of bleeding discussed in this paper. For all these articles, no further data analysis was performed; rather summaries and discussions of all of the articles included are provided in this review.

The new oral anticoagulant agents have great potential in becoming standard therapy in both VTE and stroke prevention with AF. Initial clinical evidence proves they are clinically effective and potentially cost-effective for patients searching for an alternative for warfarin. Once reversal agents are developed and long-term use data become available, these agents will likely become common in many clinical practices.