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Recombinant hirudin, a new anticoagulant, has no effect on faecal blood loss.
Author(s) -
Meyer BH,
Luus HG,
Muller FO,
Badenhorst PN,
Lotter MG,
Rothig HJ,
Grotsch H,
Rosenkranz B
Publication year - 1992
Publication title -
british journal of clinical pharmacology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.216
H-Index - 146
eISSN - 1365-2125
pISSN - 0306-5251
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2125.1992.tb04083.x
Subject(s) - hirudin , placebo , partial thromboplastin time , medicine , anticoagulant , anesthesia , direct thrombin inhibitor , gastroenterology , thrombin , surgery , platelet , pathology , warfarin , alternative medicine , dabigatran , atrial fibrillation
Hirudin is a selective thrombin inhibitor with strong anticoagulant properties which could elicit gastro‐intestinal bleeding. A double‐ blind cross‐over study of the effects of hirudin on gastro‐intestinal bleeding was therefore conducted on 12 healthy, consenting males. After labelling erythrocytes with 51Cr and returning them intravenously, stools were collected for 2 days to measure radioactivity and hence baseline faecal blood loss. After injection of hirudin or placebo stools were collected for 3 days. Partial thromboplastin time was measured sequentially after medication with hirudin or placebo. This procedure was repeated after injection of the alternate medication 1 week later. Hirudin was tolerated well. Mean faecal blood loss associated with hirudin was slightly higher than with placebo (1.63 ml vs 1.15 ml over 3 days; 95% confidence interval for the difference between hirudin and placebo was ‐0.68 to 1.63) but these differences are clinically irrelevant. After hirudin injection PTT was elevated to about twice the baseline values but returned to baseline within 12 h after the last hirudin injection.