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I Am 40, Male. I Have Had DVT 3 Times
Question: I am 40, Male. I have had DVT 3 times (2006, 2007 and 2013) and doctors said this is because my blood has a tendency to clot and asked me to take Acitrom life long. When I met a new doctor in early 2018 after I shifted my residence, he said they can prescribe ewnew there are new medicines avialable which does not require INR testing. I said no because it was very expensive compared to Acitrom. Last week when I went for a general checkup another physician asked me why not consdier Pradaxa instead of Acitrom since it does not require INR testing and I can eat green veggies that i like. I stated the same reason that it is expensive andI can't afford.
However after reaching home, I searched online and found the same composition tablet by other, reputed manufacturers that are not as costly - about one/third of Pradaxa, which I can afford.
My question is whether these replacements for Pradaxa are OK to take (I will of course check with my doctor if these are fine, before I swtich to it). I got to know that the drawback is that the effects are not reversible with Vit K as the case is with Acitrom or Warfarin.
Wanted an opinion on whether it is OK to try the alternative to Pradaxa (quality wise, since these are only one-third of PRadaxa). Are they cheaper (in India) because they are local companies and Pradaxa hs to be imported?
Any other drawbacks/suggestions would e welcome. As mentioned, I am here for information - I will not take a decision on my own about switching without consulting with my doctor personally first.
However after reaching home, I searched online and found the same composition tablet by other, reputed manufacturers that are not as costly - about one/third of Pradaxa, which I can afford.
My question is whether these replacements for Pradaxa are OK to take (I will of course check with my doctor if these are fine, before I swtich to it). I got to know that the drawback is that the effects are not reversible with Vit K as the case is with Acitrom or Warfarin.
Wanted an opinion on whether it is OK to try the alternative to Pradaxa (quality wise, since these are only one-third of PRadaxa). Are they cheaper (in India) because they are local companies and Pradaxa hs to be imported?
Any other drawbacks/suggestions would e welcome. As mentioned, I am here for information - I will not take a decision on my own about switching without consulting with my doctor personally first.
Brief Answer:
You can try pradaxa.
Detailed Answer:
Hi, dear
I have gone through your question. I can understand your concern.
Your have repeated attacks of deep vein thrombosis. So you need oral anti coagulant. We have two options one is traditional like acitrom.
Other is newer drug like pradaxa.
From your question I can understand that you have good knowledge of this drug price and it's side effects.
For DVT we can use pradaxa.
Pradaxa has many advantages over acitrom.
It has rapid onset of action with short half life so we can easily control it's effect. It has little interaction with food so diatery restrictions are not needed. Frequent INR testings are not required.
But same time it has few disadvantages.
It is somewhat costly and we can not monitor it's effect. moreover in life threatening cases of bleeding we don't have antidot.
So if you are ok with cost then I advise you that you can shift to pradaxa. Because it is more suitable in DVT in young patients without renal impairment.
In my opinion if cost is not an issue then you can switch over to pradaxa after consulting your treating physician.
Hope I have answered your question. If you have any doubts then feel free to contact me. I will be happy to answer. Thanks for using health care magic. Wish you a very good health.
You can try pradaxa.
Detailed Answer:
Hi, dear
I have gone through your question. I can understand your concern.
Your have repeated attacks of deep vein thrombosis. So you need oral anti coagulant. We have two options one is traditional like acitrom.
Other is newer drug like pradaxa.
From your question I can understand that you have good knowledge of this drug price and it's side effects.
For DVT we can use pradaxa.
Pradaxa has many advantages over acitrom.
It has rapid onset of action with short half life so we can easily control it's effect. It has little interaction with food so diatery restrictions are not needed. Frequent INR testings are not required.
But same time it has few disadvantages.
It is somewhat costly and we can not monitor it's effect. moreover in life threatening cases of bleeding we don't have antidot.
So if you are ok with cost then I advise you that you can shift to pradaxa. Because it is more suitable in DVT in young patients without renal impairment.
In my opinion if cost is not an issue then you can switch over to pradaxa after consulting your treating physician.
Hope I have answered your question. If you have any doubts then feel free to contact me. I will be happy to answer. Thanks for using health care magic. Wish you a very good health.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Yogesh D
Thank you doctor. Can you also answer my question about alternatives to Pradaxa available from Cipla, Sun, Abbot, Dr Reddys etc? Pradaxa itself I cannot afford but these alternatives seem to be ore affordable - that was the main reason for my question. Whether they are the same as Pradaxa itself except for the cost.
Brief Answer:
You can use alternative from other companies.
Detailed Answer:
Hi, dear
I have gone through your question. I can understand your concern.
You can use alternative of pradaxa from other companies which are affordable. There is no significant difference in the effect. Slight difference is there with every company but it is acceptable. You can use alternative from cipla or other companies.
Hope I have answered your question.
If you have any doubts then feel free to contact me. I will be happy to answer. Thanks for using health care magic. Wish you a very good health.
You can use alternative from other companies.
Detailed Answer:
Hi, dear
I have gone through your question. I can understand your concern.
You can use alternative of pradaxa from other companies which are affordable. There is no significant difference in the effect. Slight difference is there with every company but it is acceptable. You can use alternative from cipla or other companies.
Hope I have answered your question.
If you have any doubts then feel free to contact me. I will be happy to answer. Thanks for using health care magic. Wish you a very good health.
Note: Do you have more questions on diagnosis or treatment of blood disorders? Ask An Expert/ Specialist Now
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Vaishalee Punj
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