By Independent Staff Writer
Some experts feel that the German pharmaceutical company, Boehringer Ingelheim, rushed their new wonder drug, Pradaxa to the market perhaps a bit too quickly in an attempt to beat the competitors to the mark. Pradaxa subsequently became the first drug to rival Warfarin in over half a century. Boehringer announced that Pradaxa was as much as 35% more efficient in decreasing the risk of serious stroke than Warfarin, and in less than a year there were over a million prescriptions issued for the drug to over 400,000 patients hoping to avoid the negative aspects of Warfarin.
How is Pradaxa Used?
Pradaxa is primarily used for patients suffering from atrial fibrillation and to reduce the risks of stroke. Pradaxa also appeared to offer additional advantages over Warfarin in that there was no need for regular blood level monitoring as well as the fact that Pradaxa users didn’t have to be as concerned with mixing Pradaxa with certain foods and other medications as those taking Warfarin. While Vitamin K antagonists, such as Warfarin, are the mainstay of long-term anti-clotting therapy, there certainly exists a need for newer and safer anticoagulants. Pradaxa and other similar drugs currently undergoing trials use thrombin inhibitors as their primary ingredient; unfortunately the side effects of Dabigatran can be serious or even fatal.
Some experts feel that the German pharmaceutical company, Boehringer Ingelheim, rushed their new wonder drug, Pradaxa to the market perhaps a bit too quickly in an attempt to beat the competitors to the mark. Pradaxa subsequently became the first drug to rival Warfarin in over half a century. Boehringer announced that Pradaxa was as much as 35% more efficient in decreasing the risk of serious stroke than Warfarin, and in less than a year there were over a million prescriptions issued for the drug to over 400,000 patients hoping to avoid the negative aspects of Warfarin.
How is Pradaxa Used?
Pradaxa is primarily used for patients suffering from atrial fibrillation and to reduce the risks of stroke. Pradaxa also appeared to offer additional advantages over Warfarin in that there was no need for regular blood level monitoring as well as the fact that Pradaxa users didn’t have to be as concerned with mixing Pradaxa with certain foods and other medications as those taking Warfarin. While Vitamin K antagonists, such as Warfarin, are the mainstay of long-term anti-clotting therapy, there certainly exists a need for newer and safer anticoagulants. Pradaxa and other similar drugs currently undergoing trials use thrombin inhibitors as their primary ingredient; unfortunately the side effects of Dabigatran can be serious or even fatal.
