Probable Interaction Between Warfarin and Banana Flakes Supplement.

Area of Science:

• Pharmacology
• Gastroenterology

Background:

• Warfarin is a common anticoagulant requiring careful monitoring of the international normalized ratio (INR).
• Diarrhea can significantly impact INR by altering vitamin K availability and absorption.

Observation:

• A patient on warfarin developed subtherapeutic INR levels coinciding with the administration of banana flakes for diarrhea.
• The decrease in diarrhea correlated with a drop in INR, suggesting a potential interaction.

Findings:

• Banana flakes may resolve diarrhea by increasing vitamin K-producing intestinal flora and absorption.
• This increase in vitamin K availability likely contributed to the reduced warfarin efficacy and subtherapeutic INR.

Implications:

• Clinicians should consider banana flakes as a potential interacting agent with warfarin.
• Close INR monitoring and warfarin dose adjustments are crucial when patients use banana flakes concurrently.