What is Anticoagulant Therapy?

Coumadin® and warfarin are both types of anticoagulant therapy. "Anti" means against, and "coagulant" refers to blood clotting. Anticoagulant drug therapies, such as Coumadin® and warfarin, help prevent harmful blood clots from forming in the body.

When you get injured your body's clotting system causes certain blood proteins (called clotting facors) to work together to form a clot. Some people refer to medications like Coumadin® / warfarin as "blood thinners", but these medications do not actually change the thickness of your blood. Coumadin® / warfarin works by decreasing the clotting ability of blood.

Not all clots are bad. When you cut yourself, your body forms clots to stop bleeding. However, harmful blood clots are seen in patients who have a disease of the blood vessels, heart, are limited in their mobility, or have an irregular, rapid heartbeat called atrial fibrillation. Harmful blood clots can increase your risk of heart attack, stroke, blood clots in the lungs, and other serious medical problems.

Anticoagulant drug therapies, including Coumadin® and warfarin, help reduce the likelihood of these conditions by limiting the body's ability to form blood clots.