What are anticoagulant medicines and what do they

Anticoagulants are medicines that prevent the formation of blood clots because they block the action of substances that make the clotting. Clots are essential for healing wounds and stop bleeding, but there are situations where they can impede blood circulation, causing serious illnesses such as stroke, thrombosis and pulmonary embolism, for example.

Thus, anticoagulants allow the blood to always remain liquid inside the vessels and can circulate freely and are recommended for people who have suffered from clot-borne diseases or who are at greater risk of developing them.

The most commonly used are Heparin, Warfarin and Xarelto, which need to be used with care and always with medical monitoring, because if its use is incorrect, there is a greater chance of developing serious bleeding.

Who should use

Anticoagulants should be used by people who are more likely to develop a thrombus, such as those with cardiac arrhythmias or who use heart valve prostheses. They are also used to eliminate a thrombus that has already formed, as in cases of people with thrombosis, pulmonary embolism or infarction.

Main types of anticoagulants

Anticoagulants can be divided according to the route of their use and their form of action. They can be:

• Injectables, such as Heparin or Fondaparinux, are injected directly into the vein or region under the skin and are most commonly used in emergency situations in the hospital, such as in cases of deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, or myocardial infarction. Heparin can be used in pregnant women who have had thrombosis, since they do not interfere with the formation of the baby;
• Oral drugs such as warfarin, Coumadin, Xarelto and Pradaxa are tablets used at home daily to prevent clots from forming or to dissolve clots that are impeding blood circulation.

The choice of the best anticoagulant tablet and its dose should be made by the doctor, depending on the severity of the problem, history of diseases and the response of the body of each person.

How to choose the best oral anticoagulant

There are different types of oral anticoagulants, and your choice will depend on the consideration of its advantages and disadvantages for each person:

In the case of vitamin K inhibitors, coagulation control should normally be done once a month or according to the medical indication.

Natural Anticoagulant Remedies

There are some phytotherapeutic substances popularly known as able to "tune" the blood and decrease the risk of clot formation, such as Ginkgo biloba or Dong quai, for example.

These plants can be used in teas or ingested as capsules, sold in health food stores, however their use should never replace medicines prescribed by the physician, and should not be used in conjunction with other anticoagulants.

In addition, they should only be taken after the doctor's knowledge, as they may interfere with the action of other medications, and, like coagulant remedies, these herbal remedies should be discontinued in the preoperative period of any surgery.

Care during treatment

During treatment with anticoagulants it is important to:

• Inform the doctor whenever there are changes in diet or use of medications to avoid deregulating the anticoagulant action;
• Never mix two types of anticoagulants, except in cases of medical indication;
• Observe signs of bleeding, such as excessive blemishes on the skin, bleeding gums, blood in the urine or stools, and if any of them appear, seek medical attention.

Some foods rich in vitamin K reduce the action of certain anticoagulants, such as warfarin, and care should be taken in their consumption. However, since the dose of the anticoagulant is adjustable for the need of each person, it is not necessary to stop the consumption of all these foods, but, rather, to avoid the abrupt change of the diet, maintaining a constant amount in the diet.

Examples of such foods are dark green and leafy vegetables such as spinach, cabbage, lettuce, plus cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower, for example. See the full list of foods rich in vitamin K.

Home remedies that should not be used with anticoagulants

It is common for people to use herbal remedies or home remedies with no medical indication on a daily basis, because they think they are natural and do not harm, however, some may interact, usually intensifying, the effect of anticoagulants which causes bleeding risk and can endanger the person's life.

Thus, people who use anticoagulant or anti-aggregation drugs should be especially careful when taking home remedies or food supplements prepared based on:

• Garlic;
• Ginkgo Biloba;
• Ginseng;
• Red salvia;
• Guaco;
• Dong Quai or Chinese Angelica;
• Chestnuts;
• Boldo;
• Guaraná;
• Arnica.

Because of this type of interaction between medications and natural remedies, it is important to only take medications after the doctor's appointment or approval.