New oral anticoagulants may replace warfarin

For as many as 50 years, warfarin has been the most widely used oral anticoagulant in the United States. However, the use of the drug can be cumbersome because the anticoagulant effect of warfarin is influenced by vitamin K intake in the diet and numerous drug-drug interactions. Consequently, frequent monitoring of the international normalized ratio is necessary to ensure that a therapeutic level of anticoagulation has been achieved. Such monitoring is burdernsome for patients and physicians.

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