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• The anticoagulant effect of warfarin should be kept at an international normalised ratio (INR) of about 2.5 (desirable range, 2.0-3.0), although a higher level may be better in a few clinical conditions. The risk of bleeding increases exponentially with INR and becomes clinically unacceptable once the INR exceeds 5.0.

• Warfarin therapy should be continued for around six weeks for symptomatic calf vein thrombosis, and for 3-6 months after proximal deep vein thrombosis (DVT) that occurs after surgery or limited medical illness. Therapy for six months or longer could be considered for DVT occurring without an obvious precipitating factor, proven recurrent venous thromboembolism (VTE), or if there are continuing risk factors.

• Oral anticoagulants prevent ischaemic stroke in atrial fibrillation (AF). Maximum efficacy requires an INR > 2.0, but some benefit remains at an INR of 1.5-1.9. Patients aged over 75 years are at greatest risk of intracranial bleeding during warfarin therapy for AF, and the target INR may be reduced to 2.0-2.5, or perhaps as low as 1.5-2.0, in such patients. Warfarin should be withheld if it is more likely to cause major bleeding than to protect from stroke (eg, in young people with isolated AF where the annual baseline risk of stroke is < 1%). In patients with AF, aspirin is less effective than warfarin (much less effective after such patients have had a stroke or transient cerebral ischaemia).

• In people with prosthetic heart valves, an INR of 2.5-3.5 is probably sufficient for bileaflet or tilting disc valves, but a higher target INR is necessary for caged ball or caged disc valves. The addition of aspirin (100 mg/day) further decreases the risk of embolism but increases the risk of gastrointestinal bleeding.

These consensus guidelines offer advice on the selection of patients for warfarin therapy and management of such patients. The recommendations draw on proceedings of the Fifth American College of Chest Physicians Consensus Conference on Antithrombotic Therapy,¹ and are consistent with the most recent Guidelines on oral anticoagulation developed for the British Society for Haematology.²

The drug is rapidly and completely absorbed and immediately blocks further hepatic synthesis of the functional vitamin K-dependent haemostasis factors (II, VII, IX, X, protein C, protein S). However, its impact on the INR is delayed until preformed coagulation factors are removed, so dose adjustment must allow for these delayed effects. The plasma half-life of warfarin is about 36 hours.³

In the past, it was customary to use a loading dose of 10 mg. However, for most situations, a reduced starting dose of 5 mg per day will achieve an INR of 2.0 in four to five days.⁴

INR is measured daily or every second day during the first week of treatment, with the dose of warfarin (taken in the evening) titrated against the morning's INR. It is then measured at increasing intervals depending on response. Many patients, once the dose is stable, can be well controlled with 4-6-weekly testing and dose adjustment, but others need more frequent assessment. An empirical approach to warfarin dosing can be smooth and effective but published dose-adjustment tables can help.² Old age, reduced body weight, and impaired cardiac or liver function all predict a smaller than average dose requirement. Multiple comorbidities and a need for many drugs increase the risk of an unstable anticoagulant response.

The effect of warfarin is subject to multiple interactions. These include the dietary content or extent of absorption of vitamin K, the absorption of warfarin and its effect on the liver (which are increased or decreased by many other drugs), and the clearance of blood-clotting factors.^1,3 Intercurrent illness, starting or stopping therapy with other drugs (especially antibiotics and amiodarone) and changes in diet or bowel function can all influence the INR. Rechecking the INR within a few days of any change in medication or clinical condition is prudent.

Bleeding is minimised by regular monitoring to avoid an excessive INR and by educating patients about how warfarin works, why their dose requirement may change, and the likely settings and symptoms of bleeding complications. Successful warfarin therapy requires a partnership with patients, who should be encouraged to have their INR checked soon after any change in their normal routine. Clinics should periodically audit their results with warfarin therapy and review exceptional cases. Between 50% and 75% of INRs are likely to fall into their designated therapeutic range.⁵

Two recent Australian case reports are reminders that bioequivalence has not been formally demonstrated for Coumadin and Marevan (both from Boots Healthcare Australia, Sydney, NSW), the two locally available formulations of warfarin.⁶

Age alone is not a contraindication to warfarin therapy. Although one report showed that each decade above the age of 40 raised the risk of major bleeding by almost 50%, with a maximum effect above 70 years,⁷ others have found that age below 70 years has no influence.^8,15

The INR is the dominant determinant, whether bleeding is expressed as the absolute risk per annum (Box 2) or as relative risk. In a 1996 study, the bleeding rate was doubled as the INR increased from 2.0-2.9 to 3.0-4.4, quadrupled between 4.5-6.0, and was multiplied by five when the INR was above 7.0.¹⁵ There is a consistent increase in major bleeding (including intracranial bleeding¹⁶) when the INR exceeds 4.0-5.5.^7,11,14 A 1997 trial found that each increase in INR by 0.5 multiplied the risk of major bleeding (mostly intracranial) by 1.43.¹²

In most patients, 1-2.5 mg of oral vitamin K₁ reduces the INR from 5.0-9.0 to 2.0-5.0 within 24-48 hours; this intervention is usually sufficient in the absence of bleeding.^17,18 These small doses are obtained by withdrawing the desired amount from a 10 mg vial of injectable vitamin K₁ and giving this orally or parenterally. When the INR is > 9.0, then 5 mg vitamin K₁ may be more appropriate and can be given orally, subcutaneously or intravenously (very rarely, the last may cause a serious anaphylactoid reaction). In people with a massive accidental or self-inflicted warfarin overdose, the long half-life of warfarin means that the INR may rebound over several days as the effects of vitamin K₁ wear off. In any case, the response to vitamin K₁ needs to be monitored. Bleeding caused by a warfarin overdose is controlled with clotting factor replacement (Box 3), and this may also be indicated in the absence of bleeding when the risk is very high.¹⁹

Bleeding or an unstable dose-response should trigger a review of the need for warfarin. Continued treatment will require closer monitoring of the INR, both to detect the transient warfarin resistance caused by too much vitamin K₁, and to avoid further overanticoagulation. Heparin treatment may be required to cover a prolonged period of warfarin resistance.

Most surgery, including hip or knee replacement and many thoracic or abdominal operations, can proceed under continued warfarin cover without undue bleeding (provided the INR during and soon after surgery is about 1.5-2.0). Warfarin therapy is a contraindication for regional anaesthesia (eg, spinal, epidural, brachial blocks) and is unacceptable where even minor bleeding might cause critical damage (as in neurosurgery and some plastic surgery). It is also unpopular with most surgeons.

However, the absolute daily risk of a serious thromboembolic event is small in most people with AF, previous systemic embolism or a prosthetic heart valve (the hazard is greatest from mitral and older-model prosthetic valves, and in patients with more than one prosthetic valve). Thus, it is safe to stop warfarin therapy for several days before and after surgery in such patients. High-dose heparin cover for these indications is rarely indicated as the risk of bleeding is usually prohibitive.²⁰ The risk of recurrence is greatest during the first four weeks after VTE, so warfarin therapy should not be interrupted during this time if at all possible. If anticoagulants must be stopped for surgery soon after VTE, a vena cava filter can be placed to minimise the risk of life-threatening pulmonary embolism.

Treatment: Anticoagulants prevent early thrombus extension and embolism and minimise late recurrence. Heparin treatment can be stopped after a minimum of five days when warfarin therapy is also being given, provided that the two drugs are overlapped for at least four days and the INR has exceeded 2.0 for two or more days.²²

Increasingly, deep vein thrombosis (DVT) is now managed at home -- an approach preferred by many patients and made possible by trials which found that initial treatment with low molecular weight heparins given in a fixed dose by subcutaneous injection is no less effective or safe after DVT than standard heparin therapy. Home heparin therapy requires close monitoring to ensure compliance and a safe and effective start for warfarin therapy.^23,24

Although warfarin is now usually given for 3-6 months after VTE, there is growing evidence that the optimal duration of treatment is determined by the patient's clinical presentation. Six to 12 weeks of warfarin therapy is probably enough when DVT follows surgery or transient immobilisation ("secondary" DVT), as recurrence is minimised by six weeks of treatment after symptomatic calf vein DVT,⁷ and by three months of treatment after proximal DVT.^25,26 However, warfarin therapy for longer than six months may be required after "idiopathic" DVT, recurrent VTE, or when there is a continuing cause like cancer or an inherited or acquired "hypercoagulable" state.^27-30 Whether, in these circumstances, warfarin should be given for 12 months, two years, or longer, remains under active investigation. For individuals, the choice will also be influenced greatly by risk of bleeding.

Accuracy of diagnostic tests for DVT: Venous ultrasonography has now replaced venography as the first-line diagnostic test for clinically suspected DVT. Despite its limited sensitivity to small calf vein DVTs, a negative ultrasound result almost excludes thrombosis when there is a low pretest clinical probability for DVT (a DVT score of zero on a checklist of clinical features obtained before ultrasonography, such as active cancer, immobilisation, major surgery, entire leg swelling, localised tenderness, calf swelling, pitting oedema and collateral superficial veins).³² However, for patients in whom the pretest clinical probability is moderate (DVT score of 1-2) or high (score, > 3), a negative ultrasound result does not exclude a small DVT, and they should have either early venography or further ultrasonography once or twice within the next seven days in case there is proximal extension of an undetected calf thrombus. This approach is validated by extensive clinical follow-up.³³

Recurrent or idiopathic DVT or VTE: In a randomised trial of patients presenting with recurrent DVT, oral anticoagulant therapy for six months was followed by a recurrence in 21% during four years of follow-up, compared with 3% when treatment was continued. However, ongoing warfarin therapy increased the rate of major bleeding during the four years from 2.7% to 8.6%, while mortality remained unchanged.²⁷ Similarly, in a separate trial of management after a first "idiopathic" VTE, warfarin therapy for three months was followed by recurrence in 16 of 77 patients during 10 months of follow-up, compared with only one of 76 patients in whom warfarin therapy was continued.³⁰ However, the use of warfarin increased the annual risk of major bleeding from zero to 4%.³⁰ These high rates of bleeding reinforce the need for careful risk assessment when considering patients for long term anticoagulant therapy after VTE.

The results of these trials suggest that warfarin therapy should be continued for one year after an "idiopathic" or recurrent VTE if the risk of bleeding is acceptable, and that treatment should be extended to two years if warfarin control is straightforward and the bleeding risk remains low.

The prevalence of AF rises from about 3% at 65 years to more than 10% by 85 years, and AF accounts for about 1.5% of all strokes in people aged 50-59 years, and almost 25% of strokes in people aged 80-89 years. Age is therefore an important determinant of ischaemic stroke in AF (the relative risk [RR] of stroke in AF rises by 1.4 with each decade).³⁵ Previous stroke or transient ischaemic attack (RR, 2.5), diabetes (RR, 1.7), and treated hypertension (RR, 1.6) also contribute, as do heart failure, ischaemic heart disease, a large left atrium, and left ventricular dysfunction.¹⁰ Stroke is unlikely in isolated AF but becomes more likely as additional risk factors accumulate (Box 4). This makes warfarin therapy inappropriate for young people with AF alone and no other cardiac risk factor (isolated AF), as their annual risk of stroke (< 1%) is low enough to ensure that risk of bleeding always equals or exceeds any likelihood of gain.

Because of the risk of bleeding, these reports raise important questions about the best target level of INR, and about which patients with AF should be offered long-term warfarin therapy. The incidence of stroke is minimised by an INR > 2.0 and increases exponentially below this level, but some benefit remains while the INR is 1.5-1.9. When considering warfarin therapy for AF, each candidate requires a formal estimate of the relative risks of stroke (Box 4) and bleeding (Box 2).

Aspirin or warfarin for AF? The 30% risk reduction in stroke from aspirin treatment is well below the 70% achieved with warfarin therapy.¹⁰ In a blinded analysis of clinical outcomes when the two drugs were compared, warfarin was better at preventing cardioembolic strokes and strokes of uncertain cause.³⁸ This is consistent with the small effect observed with aspirin for secondary stroke prevention in patients with AF and who have had a stroke or TIA -- warfarin reduced the risk of recurrence by 62%, compared with only 16% for aspirin.³⁹ It may be a useful compromise to reserve aspirin for patients with uncomplicated AF whose baseline risk of embolism is low.

Warfarin, INR and aspirin in elderly patients with AF: Age above 75 years and a high INR both increase the hazard from intracranial and other major bleeding during warfarin therapy. Because there is some residual benefit at an INR of 1.5-1.9, this reduced target range may offer an acceptable exchange of safety for benefit in some elderly patients. Where the risk of bleeding is high, aspirin is less effective, but safer than warfarin.  

The American College of Chest Physicians recommends an INR of 2.0-3.0 for recent-model bileaflet or tilting disc valves, and 2.5-3.5 for older and more thrombogenic valves that have a caged ball or disc; patients with a newly placed bioprosthetic (tissue) valve require three months of warfarin and an INR of 2.0-3.0.⁴³ However, in our view, because the evidence is incomplete, it remains prudent to retain a target range of 2.5-3.5 for most ("low-risk") prosthetic valves while aiming higher (3.0-4.5) for older and more thrombogenic models, provided there is no contraindication (Box 1). This view is consistent with recent recommendations from the British Society for Haematology.²

Antiplatelet drugs alone are ineffective, but combining dipyridamole or aspirin (100 mg/day) with warfarin reduces the risk of systemic embolism. Meta-analysis suggests that the penalty for adding aspirin is a 2.5-times increase in major gastrointestinal bleeding,⁴⁴ so the combination is perhaps best avoided, except in patients considered to be at unusually high risk of systemic thromboembolism (more than one mechanical valve, previous embolism, associated AF).⁴³

Oral anticoagulants in pregnancy: Oral anticoagulants cross the placenta and should be avoided throughout pregnancy, especially during the first and third trimesters.⁴⁹ Treatment at 6-12 weeks' gestation causes calcified epiphyses (chondrodysplasia punctata) and a characteristic nasal hypoplasia in offspring,⁵⁰ while later exposure is associated with central nervous system abnormalities, including microcephaly.⁵¹ In one report, almost 30% of children (10 of 35) born to mothers with a prosthetic heart valve were malformed if acenocoumarol was taken through 6-12 weeks' gestation, but none of 19 developed a malformation when this drug was replaced with heparin before the sixth week.⁵² Continuing warfarin therapy until term also exposes infants to the risk of intracranial and other major bleeding during birth. Heparins do not cross the placenta and do not cause these problems.^53-55 It is safe to breastfeed during warfarin therapy as there is minimal excretion into breast milk.⁵⁶

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Reprints will not be available from the authors.
Correspondence: Professor A S Gallus, Director, SouthPath, C/- Flinders Medical Centre, Bedford Park, SA 5042.

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