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Treatment Options for Atrial Fibrillation
Stroke Prevention in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation
Vitamin K interferes with the action of warfarin. Therefore, it is important to maintain a consistent diet where vitamin K-containing foods are concerned. Examples include leafy greens, broccoli, and fruits.
Many medications can also affect the action of warfarin. Therefore, it is critical to alert all health care providers that you are taking warfarin. It is also helpful to use the same pharmacy for all prescriptions so that the pharmacist can help to monitor for potential drug interactions.
Ximelagatran (Exanta) is a new medication which may offer an alternative to Coumadin. This is an oral direct thrombin inhibitor which is given twice a day and produces such predictable levels of anticoagulation that it does not require monitoring with prothrombin times or INRs. This medication also has the advantage that, unlike warfarin, it does not interact with most foods and medications. It does, however, cause some abnormalities of the liver and, for this reason, it has not yet received FDA approval.
