Direct oral anticoagulants versus warfarin: is new always better than the old?

Abstract

About 1.4 British million people are at risk of strokes due to non-valvular atrial fibrillation (AF) necessitating long-term anticoagulation. The vitamin K antagonist, warfarin, has a long half-life and narrow therapeutic range necessitating regular monitoring and is a common cause of iatrogenic hospital admission. Direct-acting oral anticoagulants (DOACs), dabigatran, rivaroxaban, apixaban and edoxaban are not required to have monitoring but are sensitive to changes in renal function and are associated with poorer adherence. There are good grounds to believe that DOACs are not always superior to warfarin in routine practice particularly with an older population. Much higher levels of therapeutic effectiveness can be achieved using a simple genotype guidance to identify those who are highly sensitive and by adoption of home monitoring. These adjustments could make warfarin the preferred drug for most people and would reduce the dramatic rise in health service expenditure.

Keywords: anticoagulants; atrial fibrillation; stroke; warfarin.

Figure 1

Adherence data for oral anticoagulants in 380 nationally distributed general practices (2143 general practitioners) in September 2016 using selected InPS Vision clinical systems. AF, atrial fibrillation.