Take a look at the Recent articles

Oral anticoagulant drugs represent an essential tool in thrombo-embolic events prevention particularly in patients suffering from atrial fibrillation or heart prosthetic valve wearers. Most used are vitamin K antagonists (VKA), whose plasma level is monitored by measuring prothrombin time using the International Normalized Ratio (INR).

If it takes values out of the recommended range, the patient will have a higher risk of suffering from thromboembolic or haemorrhagic complications. These are relevant reasons to carry out preventive actions.

Another option to solve this problem could be to replace VKA by non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants (NOACs). However, these drugs have no approved use in heart prosthetic valve wearers and besides that, many unresolved questions on how to optimally use these agents in specific clinical situations remain.

Previous research has shown that about 33% of total VKA anticoagulated patients keep values on inappropriate level.

Through educational and behavioural interventions, these patients increase their knowledge and understanding of the action mechanisms of anticoagulants drugs which may increase their ability to keep an INR appropriate control.

Selfcare support programs are presented as a tool to accomplish a change. This tool or method is also presented as an alternative to the one in which citizens could receive more information about their health state (this fact is in accordance with a demonstrated rise in people’s request on health issues via the internet).

The present study shows that conducting an organized group educational intervention on VKA anticoagulated patients by using the School for Patients method will result in improved inappropriate INR control levels.