Orally Active Direct Thrombin Inhibitors

Anticoagulants are widely used for the prevention and treatment of venous and arterial thrombosis. Current treatment strategies often employ a combination of parenteral and oral agents because the only available orally active anticoagulants, vitamin K antagonists, have a delayed onset of action. Furthermore, vitamin K antagonists have a narrow therapeutic window that necessitates careful anticoagulation monitoring, and dosing is problematic …