Europace : European pacing, arrhythmias, and cardiac electrophysiology : journal of the working groups on cardiac pacing, arrhythmias, and cardiac cellular electrophysiology of the European Society of Cardiology
-
In recent years, non-vitamin K oral anticoagulants (NOACs) have emerged as an alternative to warfarin for the prevention and treatment of thrombo-embolic disease. Large randomized trials have demonstrated that these agents, which act by directly targeting thrombin (dabigatran) and factor Xa (rivaroxaban, apixaban, and edoxaban), are at least as effective as warfarin, with lower rates of bleeding and fewer interactions with food and drugs. ⋯ New specific antidotes (e.g. idarucizumab, andexanet alfa, and ciraparantag) show promising data, and may soon become available for clinical use. In this article, we review the pharmacology of these agents, the incidence and outcomes of haemorrhagic complications, the available strategies for anticoagulation reversal, and the more recent advances for the development of specific antidotes.