Betrixaban: A Novel Factor Xa Inhibitor for the Prevention of Venous Thromboembolism in Acutely Ill Medical Patients.
Cardiol Rev. 2018 Jul 31;:
Authors: Lee K, Cham S, Lam S
Abstract
Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a common and preventable cause of morbidity and mortality in hospitalized patients. Low molecular weight heparin, low dose unfractionated heparin, fondaparinux and warfarin have been the mainstay options for the prevention and treatment of VTE before the emergence of non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants (NOACs) such as dabigatran, rivaroxaban, apixaban and edoxaban. Despite the advantages of NOACs in improving patient adherence, none of them are approved for the prevention of VTE in acutely ill medical patients at high risk of thromboembolism. Betrixaban is a new NOAC and a factor Xa inhibitor that was approved for extended duration thromboprophylaxis in these high risk patients. The approval was based on the results of the APEX (Acute Medically Ill VTE Prevention with Extended Duration Betrixaban) study. In this Phase III randomized controlled trial, once daily oral betrixaban (35 to 42 days extended duration) was associated with a reduction of composite VTE with no difference in major bleeding when compared to once daily subcutaneous enoxaparin (6 to 14 days standard duration). Betrixaban differs from other NOACs by having a longer half-life, minimal CYP450 interactions and minimal renal clearance. This article provides an overview of betrixaban's pharmacological profile, clinical trial results, and its potential roles in therapy.
PMID: 30067518 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]