[New oral anticoagulants for prophylaxis of stroke. Results of an expert conference on practical use in geriatric patients].

Geriatric patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (AF) are increasingly being treated with novel oral anticoagulants (NOAC) to prevent ischemic stroke. This article highlights the outcome of an expert meeting on the practical use of NOAC in elderly patients. An interdisciplinary group of experts discussed the current situation of stroke prevention in geriatric patients and its practical management in daily clinical practice.

Cytomegalovirus infection is associated with venous thromboembolism of immunocompetent adults--a case-control study.

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) seems to contribute to the development of venous thromboembolism (VTE) in immunocompromised patients whereas literature data on the role in immunocompetent individuals are mainly limited to case reports. This study aimed to investigate if cytomegalovirus infection contributes to the development of VTE in immunocompetent individuals. CMV-IgG and CMV-IgM antibody titres, CMV-IgG avidity and CMV-DNA were identified in samples from 166 VTE patients and from 166 healthy blood donors matched for gender and age.

Association of ADAMDEC1 haplotype with high factor VIII levels in venous thromboembolism.

A suggestive locus on chromosome 8 could be shown to be associated with familial high factor VIII (FVIII) levels in venous thromboembolism. The ADAMDEC 1 gene is a candidate expressing an ectodomain sheddase. However, the ectodomain of the clearance receptor for FVIII, the low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein (LRP), is subject to proteolysis by metalloproteases like ADAMDEC1.

Molecular defects in the ABCA1 pathway affect platelet function.

Platelet function is sensitive to alterations in cholesterol metabolism, and hypercholesterolemia is associated with enhanced platelet reagibility. Atherogenic low-density lipoproteins (LDL), in particular oxidized LDL, activate src-kinase-family-dependent signalling. In contrast, antiatherogenic high-density lipoproteins(HDL) inhibit platelet aggregation and target the phosphatidylinositol phospholipase C (PI-PLC) pathway.

High factor VIII levels in venous thromboembolism show linkage to imprinted loci on chromosomes 5 and 11.

High factor VIII (FVIII) levels are known to be a risk factor for deep venous thrombosis, but the mechanisms responsible for high FVIII levels remain unclear. Here, a new phenotype "FVIII level residuum" (FVIII-R) was defined in order to eliminate the impact of common determinants on FVIII levels. We studied 13 families of patients with thrombosis and reproducibly high FVIII levels of unknown origin.

High factor VIII (FVIII) levels in venous thromboembolism: role of unbound FVIII.

Theoretically, von Willebrand factor (VWF) should be capable of binding all factor VIII (FVIII), but an unbound FVIII (uFVIII) plasma fraction remains. In patients' status post deep-vein thrombosis (DVT), an altered uFVIII fraction and high FVIII levels might be indicative of dysfunctional FVIII regulation. Out of 928 consecutive DVT patients, 321 were found to have high FVIII levels.