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Published on: February 28, 2012
Dabigatran for left ventricular thrombus
Satishkumar Kolekar1, Chandrashekhar Munjewar2, Satyavan Sharma3
1Senior Registrar, Department of Cardiology, Bombay Hospital Institute of Medical Sciences, Bombay Hospital, 12, New Marine Lines, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400 020, India.
Insights
This case study highlights dabigatran
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Pharmacology
Background:
- Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) in the dilated phase presents complex management challenges.
- Patients often experience multiple hospitalizations due to heart failure, stroke, and arrhythmias like atrial fibrillation and ventricular tachycardia.
Observation:
- A male patient with dilated hypertrophic cardiomyopathy had recurrent hospitalizations and required anticoagulation with warfarin.
- Warfarin therapy was discontinued due to unstable INR levels, and transthoracic echocardiography revealed a left ventricular thrombus.
Findings:
- Treatment with dabigatran 110mg twice daily for 4 months resulted in complete resolution of the left ventricular thrombus.
- No bleeding or embolic events occurred during dabigatran therapy.
Implications:
- This case suggests potential thrombolytic properties of dabigatran, a direct thrombin inhibitor.
- Dabigatran may be a viable therapeutic option for resolving left ventricular thrombus in specific patient populations.
Abstract:
Male patient in dilated phase of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy had multiple hospitalizations during the past 2 years either due to congestive heart failure, stroke, scar epilepsy, or atrial fibrillation and ventricular tachycardia. Medication included evidence based therapy for heart failure, cordarone and warfarin. Anticoagulation had to be discontinued due to marked fluctuations in INR. Transthoracic Echocardiography (TTE) revealed a mobile mass in the left ventricle. He was treated with Dabigatran 110mg twice a day for 4 months without any bleeding or embolic episode and complete resolution of thrombus. Dabigatran is a reversible direct thrombin inhibitor and currently approved for the prevention of thromboembolic episodes in non-valvar atrial fibrillation. This case demonstrates possible thrombolytic properties of dabigatran in resolution of left ventricular thrombus.
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