Blood thinners and kidney function
And while blood thinners can drastically decrease their stroke risk, new research shows the drugs could damage their kidneys. People with A-fib often have problems with blood clots forming that can lead to strokes. To prevent the clots, health care providers generally prescribe these patients with anticoagulant drugs, or blood thinners.
Kidney function is known to reduce over age. Since we should all be having annual test for liver and kidney function anyway I think this should not cause any alarm.
Another good reason to choose DOACs over Wafarin as far as I’m concerned.
Of course it’s good to be made aware of these things but as I get older I seem to be getting more cynical about the claims made on the internet by all sorts of commercially motivated organisations about all sorts of miscellaneous issues. Over here in the UK, we are told that DOACs do not have a detrimental effect on the kidneys but because excess chemicals are excreted via the kidneys, it is important to have blood tests every 6 months to check they function within the acceptable range. As BobD says, the blood tests increase with age and the dose often reduces. This information is available in the NICE recommendations as shown in the link below. Just so that you are aware Dave, NICE is a UK government sponsored organisation which as far as I know, has no commercial interests.
AND, I do wish they would not call them 'blood thinners'!!!** No thinning of the blood involved.
Pushing on an open door here momist but over the 7 years I have been on the forum, there has been an obvious progression in using the term anticoagulant. Last year I raised the issue purely because of the effect the term was having on newly diagnosed members who were convinced that they were seriously vulnerable to spontaneous internal and external bleeds at the drop of a hat (figuratively speaking) and the vitriol that came back was amazing.
Strange really when you think that the primary purpose of this forum is to help those who succumb to AF come to terms with the condition, so not really a big ask, is it 😉
On a very simplistic level, every pill messes with the body's superb fully integral system and is likely to have a downside. Medics are very good at reassuring us not to worry but the bottom line is it is left to us individually and no one else to weigh up the pros & cons of each before taking it. Personally, if there is any significant doubt over what's best, I prefer not to medicate.
In this more recent study published in the BMJ, the decline in function was greater with DOACs than with warfarin: heart.bmj.com/content/106/5... I don't think there is much difference between them in reality.
Hi Dave, just wondering what medication you take for your AF……
Metoprolol 50 mg
Eliquis 5 mg twice per day
Flecainide Acetate 50 mg twice per day
You just need to read the information leaflets and the possible side effects to be worried. Never mind the accumulated risks of multiple drugs!
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Diarrhoea and blood thinners continued
