BACKGROUND Patients with cancer are at increased risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE) and the risk is further elevated after a primary VTE. To reduce the risk of recurrent events, extended prophylaxis with vitamin K antagonists (VKA) is available for use. However, in a large randomized trial (Comparison of Low-Molecular-Weight Heparin versus Oral Anticoagulant Therapy for the Prevention of Recu...

BACKGROUND The activated clotting time (ACT) has been reported to be sensitive to the anticoagulant activity of the low-molecular weight heparin dalteparin following intravenous (IV) administration. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the feasibility of an ACT-guided dalteparin dose adjustment strategy during percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). METHODS This was a retrospective study of 104 consecut...

BACKGROUND Current thrombolytic-antithrombotic regimens in acute myocardialinfarction (AMI) are limited by incomplete early coronary reperfusion and by reocclusion and reinfarction. We compared the effects of low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) versus unfractionated heparin (UFH) as an adjunct to recombinant tissue-plasminogen activator (alteplase) on coronary artery patency and clinical outcom...

Methods: We studied 650 consecutive patients with a mechanical heart valve, chronic atrial fibrillation, or embolic stroke who required interruption of warfarin therapy because of an invasive procedure. Warfarin was stopped 5 or 6 days before the procedure, and patients received subcutaneous dalteparin sodium, 100 IU/kg twice daily, starting 3 days before the procedure. The risk of postprocedur...

BACKGROUND The use of low-molecular weight heparin (LMWH) during percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) has been limited by the presumed inability to monitor its anticoagulant effect using bedside assays. OBJECTIVES This study was designed to compare the dose-response of enoxaparin, dalteparin and unfractionated heparin (UFH) on the activated clotting time (ACT), and to determine whether th...

BACKGROUND Retinal vein occlusion is the second most common vascular disease of retina after diabetic retinopathy, affecting 1.6% of the population above the age of 40. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of dalteparin and aspirin in patients with recent-onset branch retinal vein occlusion. METHODS A randomized clinical trial was conducted on patients with branch retinal vein occl...

BACKGROUND Considerable variability exists in the use of pharmacological thromboprophylaxis among acutely ill medical patients, partly because clinically relevant end points have not been fully assessed in this population. We undertook an international, multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial using clinically important outcomes to assess the efficacy and safety of daltep...

BACKGROUND Patients with cancer have a substantial risk of recurrent thrombosis despite the use of oral anticoagulant therapy. We compared the efficacy of a low-molecular-weight heparin with that of an oral anticoagulant agent in preventing recurrent thrombosis in patients with cancer. METHODS Patients with cancer who had acute, symptomatic proximal deep-vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, o...

BACKGROUND Restenosis after angioplasty is essentially due to intimal hyperplasia. Low-molecular-weight heparins (LMWHs) have experimentally been shown to have antiproliferative effects in addition to their antithrombotic properties. Their potential in reducing restenosis remains to be established. Therefore, we wanted to test the hypothesis that LMWH plus aspirin is more effective than aspirin...