Anticoagulant & Antiplatelet Drugs Flashcards
What are venous thrombi primarily composed of?
Fibrin and trapped RBCs with relatively few platelets
What are arterial thrombi primarily composed of?
Platelet aggregates held together by small amounts of fibrin
True or false: Venous thrombi are fibrin rich
True
True or false: Arterial thrombi are platelet rich
True
Venous thrombosis is primarily treated with ________.
Anticoagulation
Arterial thrombosis is primarily treated with _______.
Anti platelet therapy
Do you use anticoagulation or anti platelet therapy for atrial fibrillation?
Anticoagulation
When using anticoagulation, you need to assess if the benefit of preventing coagulation worth the risk of ______ of the patient.
Bleeding
What medications do you give to treat stable angina? (4 things)
- Anti-anginal agents (nitrates, beta blockers)
- Anti-HTN
- Lipid-lowering medication (statins)
- Anti-platelet therapy (aspirin)
True or false: You should use anticoagulation to treat stable angina.
False, Use anti-platelet therapy (aspirin)
What medications do you give to treat coronary artery disease? (4 things)
- Anti-anginal agents (nitrates, beta blockers)
- Anti-HTN
- Lipid-lowering medication (statins)
- Anti-platelet therapy (aspirin)
Do you use anti platelets or anticoagulation for unstable angina?
Both
Immediate aspirin is given for treatment of ____.
Acute myocardial infarction with ST elevation
What is the “clot buster” used for thrombolytic therapy?
Plasmin. Fibrinolytic medications are tissue plasminogen activators which makes plasminogen into plasmin.
What is dual anti platelet therapy?
Aspirin + choice of P2Y12 inhibitor (clopidogrel, prasugrel, ticagrelor)
What is the suffix for P2Y12 inhibitors?
-grel (or -grelor)
Name 3 P2Y12 inhibitors
- clopidogrel
- prasugrel
- ticagrelor
If the patient is proceeding to the catheterization lab or is high risk, what kind of inhibitor do you add in addition to the dual anti platelet therapy?
G2b/3a inhibitors. Eptifibatide, tirofiban, abciximab
Name 3 G2b/3a inhibitors
- Eptifibatide
- Tirofiban
- Abciximab
For anticoagulation, what medications do you use?
Unfractionated heparin or enoxaparin/fondaparinux. Enoxaparin and fondaparinux are both low molecular weight heparin.
Name 3 low molecular weight heparins (LMWH).
- Enoxaparin
- Fondaparinux
- Dalteparin
If the patient is proceeding to catheterization, what anticoagulant should you consider?
Bivalirudin
Rivaroxaban is an oral drug that directly inhibits what factor? What does this do?
Factor Xa, this inhibits the conversion from prothrombin to thrombin.
Is Rivaroxaban delivered orally or IV?
oral
Dabigatran is an oral drug that directly inhibits what?
Thrombin
Is Dabigatran delivered orally or IV?
oral
How can you remember that rivaroxaban is a direct Factor Xa inhibitor?
rivaroXAban. Xa is in the name.
How can you remember that Dabigatran is the direct Thrombin inhibitor?
Da-Big-atran. “da big” can help you remember that it inhibits Thrombin directly which is the big player in the cascade.
What two molecules are released from platelets to activate neighboring platelets?
ADP, TXA2
What does the activation of platelets do?
It moves GP2b/3a to the surface of the platelet which allows circulating fibrinogen to bind platelets together
What does thrombin do?
Converts fibrinogen to fibrin which creates the fibrin reinforcement of the platelet clot
In the platelet and coagulation cascades, which sites do anti platelet therapies target?
They target the GP2b/3a sites to inhibit aggregation. They also target ADP/TXA2 receptors to prevent activation of platelets
In the platelet and coagulation cascades, which sites do anticoagulation agents target?
They target thrombin, which prevents the conversion of fibrinogen into fibrin (prevents the final steps of the coagulation cascade from happening on the surfaces of platelets). And they target factor Xa which prevents the creation of thrombin from prothrombin.
Anti platelet and anticoagulation agents prevent clots. But what if clots are already present? Tissue plasminogen activators are used to break existing clots. What do tissue plasminogen activators do?
They turn plasminogen into plasmin which degrades fibrin.
For lab monitoring of anticoagulant drugs, which 3 tests do you use?
aPTT, PT/INR, and dTT
What does the aPTT monitor?
Intrinsic pathway
What does PT/INR monitor?
Extrinsic pathway
What does dTT monitor?
Directly monitors thrombin (hence, direct thrombin time = dTT)
Which test is used to monitor management of patients taking warfarin?
PT/INR
Name the 3 parenteral administered indirect thrombin-Xa inhibitors
Heparin (UFH), Enoxaparin (LMWH), Fondaparinux (LMWH)
Notice the “-parin(-)” in each of the drug names
Name the 2 parenteral administered direct thrombin inhibitors
Lepirudin, Bivalirudin
Notice the “-rudin” suffix
Name 3 oral anticoagulant agents.
Warfarin, Dabigatran, Rivaroxaban
Out of Warfarin, Dabigatran, and Rivaroxaban, which of these oral anticoagulants are direct-acting? And where do they directly act?
Dabigatran (thrombin) and Rivaroxaban (factor Xa)
Are Heparin (UFH) and LMWH’s direct or indirect inhibitors of thrombin and Xa?
Indirect, they work by complexing with antithrombin (ATIII) which increases its anticoagulation action by 1000X.
Heparin is an indirect inhibitor of thrombin. What must occur for this to happen?
Heparin binds to ATIII and thrombin. It is large enough to bind to both at once
LMWH (e.g. Fondaparinux) is an indirect inhibitor of Xa. What must occur for this to happen?
Binds to ATIII.
LMWH’s are small heparins and they aren’t big enough to bind more than just the ATIII. However, this is fine, because that’s all it needs to inactivate Xa
What molecule must Heparin bind to exert its anticoagulant effect?
ATIII (antithrombin III)
What is the most commonly used vitamin K antagonist?
Warfarin
Why is UFH and LMWH used for anticoagulation in pregnancies?
Because, UFH and LMWH are large, negatively charged molecules that cannot cross the placenta and are not absorbed from GI tract (given IV).
Why is vitamin K antagonist not given in pregnancies?
Because, it can cross into the placenta. It has almost 100% oral absorption. This is why Warfarin is orally administered. (UFH and LMWH are IV administered)
Between LMWH and UFH, which is dose-dependent and needs monitoring?
Heparin (UFH) is dose-dependent (zero order elimination kinetics) and needs monitoring!
Zero order elimination kinetics means that the drug elimination is independent of concentration in the body. This means that you can saturate the elimination process which can result in toxicity.