New research about patient attitudes and knowledge about use of anticoagulants is the focus of awareness campaign during Thrombosis Month in Canada
TORONTO, Oct. 13, 2023 /CNW/ - Sahar Monzavi-Bacon remembers the exact moment her life changed in 2019. One day she was doing some light exercise in her home as she recovered from surgery and the next day when she was in her local hospital's Intensive Care Unit on a ventilator. She had unknowingly developed a deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in her leg that led to a pulmonary embolism (a PE or blood clot in the lungs), shortness of breath, several cardiac arrests, a lengthy hospital stay and a new treatment regimen that included the use of anticoagulants (commonly referred to as blood thinners) to prevent future dangerous blood clots.
Four years later, the 36-year-old high school guidance counsellor from Hamilton, Ontario, is a patient advocate volunteer for Thrombosis Canada sharing her story to help educate Canadians about thrombosis (blood clots), signs and symptoms, risk factors and managing thrombosis using blood thinners.
Today marks World Thrombosis Day and this year Thrombosis Canada is focused on raising awareness about the use of anticoagulants (blood thinners) to treat blood clots in the veins and prevent severe outcomes like stroke or pulmonary embolism. In Canada, both DVT and PE -- collectively known as venous thromboembolism (VTE) -- are serious medical conditions and potentially life threatening. Thrombosis affects approximately 200,000 people each year. Blood clots are the underlying cause of the top three cardiovascular killers in Canada, including heart attack, stroke and VTE.
A February 2023 research study commissioned by Thrombosis Canada and led by Dr. Deborah Siegal, Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine within the Division of Hematology at the University of Ottawa, and Scientist in the Clinical Epidemiology Program at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, surveyed 305 Canadians who either use anticoagulants or are a caregiver for someone who does. The goal was to assess the knowledge and attitudes of respondents about the use of anticoagulants, dosing (missed or skipped doses), comfort level of using anticoagulants, bleeding, and reversal agents. The findings prompted the need for more awareness about anticoagulants to address gaps in information.
"Anticoagulants continue to be widely used to treat or prevent several serious health conditions, yet a significant number of respondents report missing or skipping doses and not knowing what to do should they miss a dose," said Dr. Siegal, who sits on the Leadership Team for Thrombosis Canada. "It's a concern to learn 44 per cent of respondents admit to missing or skipping doses of the prescription medication, with 42 per cent not knowing or not sure what to do after missing a dose."
Dr. Siegal says the research results also indicated that more knowledge is required around anticoagulants and bleeding issues. Roughly two to four per cent of people in Canada experience major bleeding while taking an anticoagulant each year.
"Anticoagulants or blood thinners do not cause bleeding but can make it worse as they interfere with blood clotting which normally helps to stop the bleed," she says. "When major (serious) bleeding occurs while taking an anticoagulant, urgent care is often required in an emergency department or hospital. When non-major (less serious) bleeding occurs, it usually stops on its own and does not last long. Patients should tell their doctor about bleeding episodes."
Other findings:
- Twenty-three per cent of respondents indicated they have experienced a major bleed; 47 per cent have had a non-major bleed while taking an anticoagulant.
- More than half of respondents (55 per cent) did not know or were not sure there were treatments that can be used to reverse the effect of anticoagulants to stop major bleeding.
- More than three quarters of respondents (76 per cent) indicated they would feel more comfortable taking an anticoagulant if they knew a reversal agent could be used to stop a major bleeding incident.
Monzavi-Bacon has progressed from using injectable anticoagulants to a pill form that will require lifelong use. She understands the confusion and lack of understanding some patients have when prescribed a blood thinner. "While I've never experienced a major bleed while on the medication, it's also not an issue I've ever discussed with my doctor," she says. "I've learned a lot about my diagnosis and about treatments to stop bleeding from my own research and asking questions. You don't know what you don't know, so it's important to advocate for yourself and get the information you need from your health care team."
Dr. Siegal agrees and says education around anticoagulants and treatments that can help stop major bleeding could help provide reassurance about using a blood thinner.
"As medical professionals, we have to be vigilant in elevating public understanding about thrombosis and how we treat it," she says. "When prescribing anticoagulants, all patients should understand why it is necessary, dosing, side effects, benefits of the drug, how it may interact with other medications, choices in medications, how it could interact with some foods and the cost. Our research indicates that this is not always the case, and we have work to do."
Thrombosis Canada comprises a membership that include the most eminent and internationally recognized thrombosis experts globally. Members have made many significant contributions to the body of knowledge in vascular medicine and disseminated that knowledge through hundreds of peer-reviewed publications, as well as leading the development of international clinical practice guidelines.
Launched in 2014 and held annually on October 13, World Thrombosis Day (WTD) aims to increase awareness of thrombosis among the public, health care professionals and health care systems, and ultimately, to reduce deaths and disabilities from thromboembolic disease through a greater awareness of its causes, risk factors, signs and symptoms, and evidence-based prevention and treatment. WTD's mission supports the World Health Assembly's global target of reducing premature deaths by non-communicable disease by 25 per cent by 2025.
Thrombosis Canada acknowledges AstraZeneca Canada for its support of this awareness campaign.
SOURCE Thrombosis Canada
AND INTERVIEWS WITH PATIENTS AND PHYSICIAN SPECIALISTS, CONTACT: Dianna Eakins | Eakins Communications Inc., [email protected], 905 630 4208
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