Clinical Usage of Vitamin K and FFP in Reduction of Hospitalization in Patients with Warfarin Overactivity

In clinical practice, warfarin toxicity can cause recurrent patient hospitalization and even may lead to morbidity and mortality. The anticoagulant effect of warfarin could be reversed by a variety of methods such as simple dose administration of vitamin K and fresh frozen plasma. We designed a retrospective study to analyze of patients with upon admission diagnosis of warfarin overactivity. Sixty seven out patients admitted for overdose of warfarin from 2006 to 2010 in Alborz Hospital, Karaj, Iran: A significant decrease in mean length of hospitalization in patients received FFP and vitamin K (4.1+ or -1.9 and 4.6+ or -0.9 days, respectively) in comparison to patients who did not receive FFP and/or vitamin K (6.1+ or -1.2 days) were observed. The presented study showed that usage of vitamin K and FFP can lead to reduction in hospitalization and reduce their economic burden in patients with warfarin toxicity.