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Anticoagulation Therapy in Pregnant Patients

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Abstract

Pregnancy is an acquired hypercoagulable state. During pregnancy, there are increases in clotting factors and fibrinogen, coupled with decreases in fibrinolytic activity and endogenous anticoagulants such as protein S. The intricate balance that normally exists between endogenous anticoagulant and procoagulant factors may become disrupted, potentially leading to venous thromboembolism (VTE) affecting the mother or gestational complications involving the fetus. VTE has remained an important cause of mortality and morbidity in the pregnant patient, with pulmonary embolism (PE) as the leading cause of mortality. Moreover, in susceptible mothers with certain hypercoagulable conditions, the fetus may be subject to gestational complications that include preeclampsia, intrauterine growth restriction, and fetal loss.

The management of anticoagulation therapy during pregnancy can be challenging, particularly because anticoagulants such as the vitamin K antagonists like warfarin can cross the placenta and are associated with teratogenesis leading to congenital abnormalities, miscarriage, and fetal bleeding. Insufficient evidence currently exists on the use of direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs), so they are not recommended by current guidelines. Because negatively charged heparin molecules do not cross the placenta, low-molecular-weight heparins (LMWHs) are the preferred treatment for prophylaxis and treatment of VTE during pregnancy. In this chapter, the management of anticoagulation therapy for the pregnant patient will be reviewed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Cardiology, Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Northwell Health, Manhasset, NY, USA

    Steven A. Savella

  2. Department of Medicine, Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Northwell Health, Manhasset, NY, USA

    Jessica A. Kvasic

  3. Department of Cardiology, Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Northwell Health, Manhasset, NY, USA

    Joe F. Lau

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  1. Steven A. Savella
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  3. Joe F. Lau
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Correspondence to Joe F. Lau .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Associate Professor of Cardiology, Department of Cardiology, Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Northwell Health, Manhasset, New York, USA

    Joe F. Lau

  2. Assistant Professor, Division of Internal Medicine, Frankel Cardiovascular Center at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA

    Geoffrey D. Barnes

  3. Professor of Medicine and Pathology, Division of Hematology, Department of Medicine, The Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

    Michael B. Streiff

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Savella, S.A., Kvasic, J.A., Lau, J.F. (2018). Anticoagulation Therapy in Pregnant Patients. In: Lau, J., Barnes, G., Streiff, M. (eds) Anticoagulation Therapy . Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-73709-6_18

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