Rat Poison To Reduce Heart Attack Risk

Wellness

oi-Staff

By Staff

Monday, September 7, 2009, 11:43

As bizarre or as funny as it may sound it is true. The wisdom of the old tells us that every poison can be an antidote and that is so with rat poison as well, with a new study proves that it can significantly reduce stroke risk.

According to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, a new drug developed as an alternative to popular drug warfarin, also used as rat poison, has been found to significantly reduce stroke risk.

Though there does exist the practice of giving warfarin to patients at risk of stroke, however, the treatment is considered to be quite dangerous and a regular supervision has to be maintained during the process.

In the new study, the doctors found that the new drug, dabigatran (Pradaxa), was 34 per cent more effective at reducing the heart risk and blood clots in at-risk patients than well-controlled warfarin. It also reduced death rates by 15 per cent.

In the three-year long study, the researchers recruited patients with an average age of 71, all of whom suffered from atrial fibrillation, a heart rhythm disorder that greatly increases the risk of stroke.

The British Heart Foundation said that the results for an alternative to warfarin were promising, but the drug would not be available to patients until next year at the earliest.

"Warfarin is a highly effective treatment when indicated for stroke prevention, but it is underused, often because of safety concerns or the need for regular blood tests to monitor its effects," Times Online quoted Keith Muir, a medical advisor for the Stroke Association, as saying.

The trial indicates that dabigatran may offer a useful alternative to warfarin for stroke prevention in some circumstances. "However, the trial only involved people who could equally well have taken warfarin, and anyone currently taking warfarin should continue it unless advised by their doctor," he added.

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