pre surgery

[cubberly747]

Hi All!

I am posting for the first time . I have been on coumadin since
july 2nd 1997 . Since then i have had three surgeries and pulled tooth . For each surgery i was just required to quit taking coumadin for few days prior . Now my Doctor has a new procedure where you are to give your self shots each day prior to the operation.

Has anyone done this procedure and how did it go.

just curious

 

[Ross]

Well it's not new, fact of the matter is, they should have had you doing this right along. Lovenox bridge therapy or admit you and put you on a Heprin drip, when you cannot take your Coumadin.

See this article from Al Lodwicks website:
http://warfarinfo.com/bridgetherapy.htm

People were putting you at risk for stroke for no other reason then worrying about bleeding. Our diddy around here, "Tis easier to replace blood cells, you can't replace brain cells".

A whole bunch of great Coumadin reading and resources can be found on Al's site. You may want to check it out:
http://warfarinfo.com/warfarinfo.com2.htm

 

[JimL]

I have had several minor surgeries since getting my St. Judes a few years ago. I searched long and hard to find a surgeon who would do the procedure while I was still on coumadin. I found one in Pontiac, Michigan, which isn't impossibly far from you -- contact me if you want the information on that surgeon.
Mine have been cysts, and I just continue on my coumadin as normal. Of course, if the surgeries are more serious, that might not work. I personally would strongly resist going off coumadin for a pulled tooth.

 

[Blanche]

Cubberly:
Welcome aboard. You'll find many answers to your questions here. My husband has been on Coumadin for 15 years and has never gone off his medication for dental work and he has had plenty, including surgery to remove an impacted tooth, periodontal scaling and surgery, and a root canal.
There are many articles available, some of which are from dental associations and organizations which state that anticoagulation should be continued for almost all dental work. I have included one of those articles for you. Please note the conclusion. This was published in the Journal of the American Dental Association. Hope this helps.

http://www.ingentaconnect.com/search/expand?pub=infobike://ada/jada/2000/00000131/00000001/art00012

Regards,
Blanche

 

[ccrawford]

I'm guessing it would be pretty rare to use the Lovenox injections for a dental procedure, whereby most dentists aren't really too worried about excessive bleeding. Lovenox typically comes into play for more serious procedures. It involves getting one or two injections per day, either by a caregiver or yourself. With a minimum of instructions, one can do a passable job of self injections and its not that unpleasant. I didn't mind the evening injection, but the morning one with my coffee would have been nice to avoid. When you are using Lovenox, no monitoring is required except to find out when your INR (from Coumadin) is low enough for your procedure, and then high enough to stop the Lovenox. (Lovenox does not show up on an INR test)Hope this helps.

 

[Guest]

Even though he was rather slow in adopting bridge therapy, cubberly's doctor is to be commended for waking up to it.

The motto here is that it is easier to give blood cells than brain cells. Better to bleed than have a stroke.