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Atrial fibrillation Dabigatran/Rivaroxaban/Apixaban

Is it safe to take aspirin and warfarin together?

The ultimate goal in medicine: protect the patient from stroke. Even a heart doctor has to admit the dominance of the human brain. Always think about preventing stroke. It’s one of the worst outcomes that can happen to a person. Life as a ‘normal’ human requires a healthy brain. A stroke irreversibly kills off part […]

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AF ablation Atrial fibrillation Dabigatran/Rivaroxaban/Apixaban

New post up at theHeart.org: What were the best stories of 2012 in heart rhythm care?

As most of you know, I also write a column (Trials and Fibrillations) over at the online Cardiology news site, theHeart.org. My most recent article highlights what I thought were the top news stories in electrophysiology in 2012. There were many. Gosh were there ever. I broke a major rule of writing online articles: It […]

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Atrial fibrillation Cycling Stuff Cyclocross Dabigatran/Rivaroxaban/Apixaban Doctoring inflammation Reflection Social Media/Writing/Blogging

Top Ten Posts of 2012

You may find this hard to believe but I really don’t look at my site’s stats much. In fact, just today I discovered that WordPress has a feature that ranks posts by views. I’m not going to give you my Top Ten just by ranking. Rather, I’ll mix in some of my favorites and those […]

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Atrial fibrillation Dabigatran/Rivaroxaban/Apixaban

Apixaban (Eliquis) gets FDA approval

Yesterday afternoon, the FDA finally approved apixaban (Eliquis) for the prevention of stroke in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation. I use the words ‘finally approved’ because the markedly positive ARISTOTLE trial was published 15 months ago in the New England Journal of Medicine. The long delay was mysterious. On paper, apixaban looks to be the […]

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Atrial fibrillation Dabigatran/Rivaroxaban/Apixaban

Dabigatran (Pradaxa): Good news on safety but caution still warranted

Let’s talk about the new anticoagulants. Two recent studies involving dabigatran (Pradaxa) have shed new light on an important topic for patients with atrial fibrillation: the risk of bleeding versus the risk of stroke. Dabigatran and rivaroxaban (and soon, apixaban) have been approved for the prevention of stroke in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (AF). […]

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Atrial fibrillation Dabigatran/Rivaroxaban/Apixaban

Pradaxa is not a bad drug…

There was good news today in the atrial fibrillation world. Though no surprise to heart rhythm doctors, an FDA investigation reveals no evidence that new cases of bleeding are any higher with dabigatran (Pradaxa) than with warfarin. The full statement from the FDA is here. The assessment was undertaken because after approval of the novel […]

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AF ablation Atrial fibrillation Dabigatran/Rivaroxaban/Apixaban

New Trials and Fibrillations post up: Thoughts on left atrial appendage occlusion to prevent stroke in AF

There was a lively debate on this topic at ESC 2012. One of the strategies proposed to reduce stroke in AF involves occlusion of the sack-like structure called the left atrial appendage. Two devices are being evaluated and nearing consideration for approval. There is a great deal of debate on these devices. Here is my […]

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Atrial fibrillation Dabigatran/Rivaroxaban/Apixaban

Choosing blood thinners for Atrial Fibrillation–a great summary

When you have 15 minutes, I’d recommend heading over to the Private Practice Blog of Dr Seth Bilazarian at theHeart.org. Dr B has beautifully summarized both the clinical and real world factors that go into the difficult decision of which blood thinner to choose for prevention of stroke in patients with AF. Seth has a […]

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Atrial fibrillation Dabigatran/Rivaroxaban/Apixaban

New post up on Trials and Fibrillations…Apixaban (Eliquis) was supposed to beat Pradaxa and Xarelto?

There was big news this week on the much-anticipated, but yet-to-be-evaluated novel blood thinner, apixaban (Eliquis). The FDA wants more information from the ARISTOTLE trial. They have inquired about “data management and verification.” That sounds serious. I made some comments about apixaban over at Trials and Fibrillations on theHeart.org. Here’s the mystery: Apixaban boasts incredibly […]

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Atrial fibrillation Dabigatran/Rivaroxaban/Apixaban

Thinning the blood with dabigatran (Pradaxa) and rivaroxaban (Xarelto) –Thoughts on fear and lack of reversal agents…

The good news: Patients with heart disease have enjoyed great advances in stroke and heart attack prevention in the last few years. The bad news: most of these advances have involved novel new blood-thinning drugs. The idea of blood thinners is quite simple: Heart attacks and strokes most often stem from clotted blood. The same […]

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Atrial fibrillation Dabigatran/Rivaroxaban/Apixaban

KevinMD Comments on Dabigatran (Pradaxa)

I am grateful that influential physician and social media leader, Dr. Kevin Pho (@KevinMD), re-posted my recent dabigatran comments. As is often the case with these new drugs, a spirited conversation ensued. Head over to KevinMD and take a look at my answers to some valid issues with the drug. Also, there’s a ton of […]