Clinical trials have shown that Pradaxa, a blood thinning drug, may provide the first major pharmacological breakthrough in 50 years for people who have an increased risk of having a stroke.
In Britain alone there are up to 1.2 million people living with the condition atrial fibrillation (AF), which is when the heartbeat is quick and irregular, increasing the risk of a stroke. This condition accounts for more than 20,000 strokes each year. Over the last 50 years many AF sufferers have been prescribed warfarin, which is a blood thinning drug which was traditionally used as a rat poison. But patients need regular blood checks to ensure that the right dosage is being prescribed, as too high a level can cause dangerous bleeding.
The new trials conducted by Missouri University however have shown that Pradaxa can reduce the number of strokes by up to a third compared to using warfarin. The drug is likely to be approved for patients with AF by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) in the next couple of months. Once the EMA grants licensing approval, it will be up to the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) to decide whether it should be used in England and Wales.
