Elite athletes and anticoagulant therapy: an intermittent dosing strategy

Traditionally, the athlete who requires long-term anticoagulation has been told to forgo participation in contact and collision sports. However, a strategy of short-term interruption of anticoagulant therapy may be designed for some athletes, allowing them return to full athletic activity. A personalized pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic study of a direct oral anticoagulant (DOAC) may allow athletic participation when plasma drug concentration is minimal and resumption of treatment after the risk of bleeding sufficiently normalizes. Scientific data and uncertainties regarding this approach, as well as practical challenges in the implementation, will be discussed.