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Basic Sciences in Anesthesia pp 249–258Cite as

Pharmacology of Anticoagulants, Antithrombotics, and Antiplatelet Drugs

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Abstract

Anticoagulant therapies, which include antiplatelet and antithrombotic drugs, prevent and treat many cardiovascular disorders and are some of the most universally prescribed drugs. Rapid onset anticoagulant therapy is also required to perform a number of clinical procedures including percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI), structural heart interventions, cardiovascular surgery and other surgeries, as well as dialysis. This therapy is also used as a treatment for a number of thrombotic diseases including acute coronary syndromes (myocardial infarction and unstable angina), deep vein thrombosis, and pulmonary embolism.

When selecting the most appropriate anticoagulant drug, thorough consideration of the efficacy to safety ratio is warranted. In addition, there are a number of pharmacological factors that affect a drug’s success. This chapter focuses on the pharmacological properties of the most commonly used anticoagulants, antithrombotics, and antiplatelet drugs.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Cardiothoracic Anesthesiology, Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, University of Washington Medical Center, Regional Heart Center, Seattle, Washington, USA

    G. Burkhard Mackensen

Authors
  1. G. Burkhard Mackensen
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Correspondence to G. Burkhard Mackensen .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Departments of General Anesthesia and Outcomes Research, Anesthesiology Institute, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine, Case Western University, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Ehab Farag

  2. Center for Anesthesiology Education, Anesthesiology Institute, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Maged Argalious

  3. Department of General Anesthesia, Anesthesiology Institute, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA

    John E. Tetzlaff

  4. Department of Anesthesiology & Pain Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA

    Deepak Sharma

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Mackensen, G.B. (2018). Pharmacology of Anticoagulants, Antithrombotics, and Antiplatelet Drugs. In: Farag, E., Argalious, M., Tetzlaff, J.E., Sharma, D. (eds) Basic Sciences in Anesthesia. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-62067-1_14

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-62067-1_14

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-62065-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-62067-1

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