Anticoagulation Education: Do Patients Understand Potential Medication-Related Emergencies?

摘要

The oral anticoagulant warfarin is widely used to prevent or treat venous or arterial thromboembolism. Without proper monitoring, complications can occur, leading to morbidity and death. In the United States, warfarin is implicated in one of every seven severe adverse drug events; 25% of these adverse drug reactions require hospitalization.An estimated 29,000 emergency department visits annually are related to warfarin use, while warfarin is the most common drug identified as a cause of death on death certificates.However, most ADEs are due to medication errors and likely preventable.