Impact of rivaroxaban compared with warfarin on the coagulation status in Japanese patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation: A preliminary analysis of the prothrombin fragment 1+2 levels

BackgroundRivaroxaban is an oral anticoagulant that effectively prevents thromboembolic complications using fixed doses without requiring laboratory monitoring. In this study, we aimed to examine the coagulation status in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) treated with rivaroxaban compared with warfarin.Methods and resultsThe study group consisted of 85 consecutive Japanese patients with NVAF who received rivaroxaban (n=33) or warfarin (n=52) from June 2013 to February 2014. We compared the coagulation status between the rivaroxaban and warfarin treatments. The prothrombin time (PT) values did not significantly differ between the two groups. However, the prothrombin fragment 1+2 (F1+2) level, a marker of thrombin generation, was significantly higher in the rivaroxaban group than the warfarin group (202±88pmol/l vs. 114±79pmol/l, p