More and more groups are now tweaking periprocedural anticoagulation strategies for the patients who are being given Dabigatran and who have undergone radiofrequency (RF) ablation for atrial fibrillation (AF). Now, a new report is suggesting that the tinkering actually makes Dabigatran safer.

The report, which was published on April 3, 2013 in Circulation: Arrhythmia and Electrophysiology, is recommending that the drug given twice daily should actually be given once a day before the ablation and then “restarted immediately after sheaths [are] pulled or once patients [are] on the floor.”

The Dabigatran strategy was discovered when researchers conducted a single-center study that consisted of nearly a thousand patients who were having RF pulmonary-vein isolation for AF ablation. During that study, 376 patients were being given Dabigatran at 150-mg dose and 623 of them continued taking the Warfarin at therapeutic anticoagulation levels. The results of both drugs were similar in terms of bleeding risks.

“There was no evidence of increased thromboembolic or hemorrhagic complications with use of Dabigatran for periprocedural anticoagulation in patients undergoing AF ablation compared with uninterrupted Warfarin therapy,” write the authors, led by Dr. Mohamed Bassiouny of the Cleveland Clinic Foundation.

Other drugs that were previously used to treat AF include another anticoagulant called Multaq. Multaq is made by Sanofi-Aventis and has been linked to serious side effects including a worsening of the heart condition, liver failure and lung toxicity. It is for this reason that the FDA has recommended that doctors only prescribe Multaq if all other medications fail to work.

If you or a loved one has suffered from liver failure or a worsening heart condition after being treated with Multaq, contact the attorneys at Greg Jones today for a free consultation. I am experienced at fighting Multaq lawsuits and may be able to help you recover money for your injuries.