Anticoagulation for the Pregnant Patient with a Mechanical Heart Valve, No Perfect Therapy: Review of Guidelines for Anticoagulation in the Pregnant Patient

Heart valve replacement with a mechanical valve requires lifelong anticoagulation. Guidelines currently recommend using a vitamin K antagonist (VKA) such as warfarin. Given the teratogenic effects of VKAs, it is often favorable to switch to heparin-derived therapies in pregnant patients since they d...

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Main Authors: Aaron Richardson, Stuart Shah, Ciel Harris, Garry McCulloch, Patrick Antoun
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2017-01-01
Series:Case Reports in Cardiology
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2017/3090273
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author Aaron Richardson
Stuart Shah
Ciel Harris
Garry McCulloch
Patrick Antoun
author_facet Aaron Richardson
Stuart Shah
Ciel Harris
Garry McCulloch
Patrick Antoun
author_sort Aaron Richardson
collection DOAJ
description Heart valve replacement with a mechanical valve requires lifelong anticoagulation. Guidelines currently recommend using a vitamin K antagonist (VKA) such as warfarin. Given the teratogenic effects of VKAs, it is often favorable to switch to heparin-derived therapies in pregnant patients since they do not cross the placenta. However, these therapies are known to be less effective anticoagulants subjecting the pregnant patient to a higher chance of a thrombotic event. Guidelines currently recommend pregnant women requiring more than 5 mg a day of warfarin be switched to alternative therapy during the first trimester. This case report highlights a patient who was switched to alternative therapy during her first pregnancy and suffered a devastating cerebrovascular accident (CVA). Further complicating her situation was during a subsequent pregnancy; this patient continued warfarin use during the first trimester and experienced multiple transient ischemic attacks (TIAs). This case highlights the increased risk of thrombotic events in pregnant patients with mechanical valves. It also highlights the difficulty of providing appropriate anticoagulation for the pregnant patient who has experienced thrombotic events on multiple anticoagulants.
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spelling doaj-art-97c35bf2bc014565bbf38d4e5ad31efa2025-08-20T03:37:08ZengWileyCase Reports in Cardiology2090-64042090-64122017-01-01201710.1155/2017/30902733090273Anticoagulation for the Pregnant Patient with a Mechanical Heart Valve, No Perfect Therapy: Review of Guidelines for Anticoagulation in the Pregnant PatientAaron Richardson0Stuart Shah1Ciel Harris2Garry McCulloch3Patrick Antoun4Department of Medicine, University of Florida College of Medicine Jacksonville, Jacksonville, FL, USADepartment of Medicine, University of Florida College of Medicine Jacksonville, Jacksonville, FL, USADepartment of Medicine, University of Florida College of Medicine Jacksonville, Jacksonville, FL, USADepartment of Cardiology, University of Florida College of Medicine Jacksonville, Jacksonville, FL, USADepartment of Cardiology, University of Florida College of Medicine Jacksonville, Jacksonville, FL, USAHeart valve replacement with a mechanical valve requires lifelong anticoagulation. Guidelines currently recommend using a vitamin K antagonist (VKA) such as warfarin. Given the teratogenic effects of VKAs, it is often favorable to switch to heparin-derived therapies in pregnant patients since they do not cross the placenta. However, these therapies are known to be less effective anticoagulants subjecting the pregnant patient to a higher chance of a thrombotic event. Guidelines currently recommend pregnant women requiring more than 5 mg a day of warfarin be switched to alternative therapy during the first trimester. This case report highlights a patient who was switched to alternative therapy during her first pregnancy and suffered a devastating cerebrovascular accident (CVA). Further complicating her situation was during a subsequent pregnancy; this patient continued warfarin use during the first trimester and experienced multiple transient ischemic attacks (TIAs). This case highlights the increased risk of thrombotic events in pregnant patients with mechanical valves. It also highlights the difficulty of providing appropriate anticoagulation for the pregnant patient who has experienced thrombotic events on multiple anticoagulants.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2017/3090273
spellingShingle Aaron Richardson
Stuart Shah
Ciel Harris
Garry McCulloch
Patrick Antoun
Anticoagulation for the Pregnant Patient with a Mechanical Heart Valve, No Perfect Therapy: Review of Guidelines for Anticoagulation in the Pregnant Patient
Case Reports in Cardiology
title Anticoagulation for the Pregnant Patient with a Mechanical Heart Valve, No Perfect Therapy: Review of Guidelines for Anticoagulation in the Pregnant Patient
title_full Anticoagulation for the Pregnant Patient with a Mechanical Heart Valve, No Perfect Therapy: Review of Guidelines for Anticoagulation in the Pregnant Patient
title_fullStr Anticoagulation for the Pregnant Patient with a Mechanical Heart Valve, No Perfect Therapy: Review of Guidelines for Anticoagulation in the Pregnant Patient
title_full_unstemmed Anticoagulation for the Pregnant Patient with a Mechanical Heart Valve, No Perfect Therapy: Review of Guidelines for Anticoagulation in the Pregnant Patient
title_short Anticoagulation for the Pregnant Patient with a Mechanical Heart Valve, No Perfect Therapy: Review of Guidelines for Anticoagulation in the Pregnant Patient
title_sort anticoagulation for the pregnant patient with a mechanical heart valve no perfect therapy review of guidelines for anticoagulation in the pregnant patient
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2017/3090273
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