Evaluation of Fixed-Dose Four-Factor Prothrombin Complex Concentrate for Emergent Warfarin Reversal in Patients with...

Different strategies exist for dosing four-factor prothrombin complex concentrate (PCC4) for international normalized ratio (INR) reversal in the setting of life-threatening bleeding. Fixed doses ranging from 1000 IU to 1750 IU have demonstrated efficacy similar to weight-based dosing, however, few studies look exclusively at intracranial hemorrhage (ICH).

Our aim was to evaluate whether a fixed dose of 1000 IU of PCC4 achieves INR reversal similar to weight-based dosing in patients with ICH who were anticoagulated with warfarin.

We compared a weight-based dose vs. 1000 IU PCC4 between January 2014 and January 2017. The primary end point was achieving an INR < 1.5. Secondary end points included in-hospital mortality, patient disposition, and reversal defined by INR < 1.6.

A total of 31 patients were included in the weight-based group and 30 were included in the fixed-dose group, with baseline INRs of 2.98 and 2.84, respectively (p = 0.39). Twenty-two patients (71%) achieved an INR < 1.5 in the weight-based group vs. 16 (53%) in the fixed-dose group (p = 0.15), while 25 (81%) achieved an INR < 1.6 in the weight-based group vs. 22 (73%) in the fixed-dose group (p = 0.49). There was no difference in the number of patients discharged to home (19% vs. 20%; p = 0.95) or in-hospital mortality (26% vs. 27%; p = 0.93).

We found a non-statistically significant difference in warfarin reversal to an INR goal of < 1.5 when comparing a fixed dose of 1000 IU PCC4 and a weight-based dose for ICH. Further studies correlating clinical outcomes with INR reversal are needed.