In an observational study, resumption of oral anticoagulant therapy after anticoagulation-related gastrointestinal bleeding was associated with lower mortality despite a higher risk for recurrent bleeding.
Anticoagulant drugs reduce stroke risk but increase bleeding risk in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). AF patients receiving anticoagulant therapy often experience gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding, which is inconvenient and distressing at best and painful, costly, and lethal at worst. GI bleeding necessitates at least temporary cessation of anticoagulation. Whether and when to restart anticoagulation after the bleeding has resolved remains unclear. To address this uncertainty, Danish investigators used nationwide registry data to assess the relationship between anticoagulant use after GI bleeding and rates of stroke, recurrent bleeding, and death.
Among 4602 patients with AF who were receiving anticoagulation before a GI bleed, 27% did n…
Reviewing Author
DisclosuresSpeaker’s bureauGenentech
Grant / Research supportNational Institutes of Health/National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke; Michael Goldberg Stroke Research Fund
Editorial boardsPLOS One; Scientific Reports
Leadership positions in professional societiesNeurocritical Care Society (Research Committee Member)
DisclosuresSpeaker’s bureauGenentech
Grant / Research supportNational Institutes of Health/National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke; Michael Goldberg Stroke Research Fund
Editorial boardsPLOS One; Scientific Reports
Leadership positions in professional societiesNeurocritical Care Society (Research Committee Member)