Question

Which statement is true concerning adverse reactions during anticoagulant therapy? A. Bleeding, if experienced, is minimal and generally no serious problems result. B. Adverse reactions can be controlled with careful monitoring of blood coagulation tests. C. Adverse reactions do not occur until the patient has been on anticoagulant therapy for 2 weeks or more. D. Bleeding can occur any time during oral anticoagulant therapy, even when the laboratory tests are within normal limits.

Answer 1

Adverse reactions during anticoagulant therapy:

D) Bleeding can occur anytime during oral anticoagulant therapy, even when the laboratory tests are within normal limits.

Bleeding is the primary complication of anticoagulant therapy, and is a risk of all anticoagulants, even when maintained within usual therapeutic ranges.There are few high-quality data comparing different strategies for the management of bleeding associated with anticoagulation and thus, evidence- based recommendations are not possible, only the basic management princilples can be applied. When a patient face an active bleeding, it is important to quickly implement the fundamentals of bleeding management.