What makes us different? Read our Declaration of Journalistic Independence Home | About Natural News | Contact Us | Write for Natural News
Search our 25,000 free articles and special reports
blood thinners

Doctors advise blood thinners for heart stent patients; health advocate decries both

Tuesday, January 23, 2007 by: Ben Kage | Key concepts: blood thinners, doctors and stents

Want stories like this e-mailed to you? Click here for free email alerts

Email this article to a friend Printable Version

Can heart disease really be reversed without surgery?

Let the Weiss Method show you what conventional medicine won't: That heart disease is preventable, and even reversible.

Learn:

  • Why cholesterol-lowering medications may be useless
  • The best supplements and nutritional strategies for targeting your risk factors
  • Why prescription drugs, bypass surgery and angioplasty don't work
  • Non-invasive ways to reduce and eliminate coronary artery disease
  • Why eliminating toxins is imperative for heart health (and how to do it!)
  • Which cell salts will help you heal faster
  Click here to learn more.
(NaturalNews) In an advisory issued last week, a number of doctor groups recommended that heart patients who had drug-coated stents implanted to keep blocked coronary arteries open go on a regimen of blood thinners afterward, but one health advocate says that stents are medically useless and some blood thinners have dubious origins.

The advisory came from the American Heart Association, American College of Cardiology, Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions, American College of Surgeons and the American Dental Association, and was inspired by research that showed that blood clots formed in up to 29 percent of stent patients who stopped their anti-clotting drugs soon after the surgery. Another study cited by the groups showed that the death rate for 500 patients who received a stent after a heart attack was 7.5 percent within 11 months for those who stopped taking anti-coagulants, and 0.7 percent for patients who continued to take the drugs.

In response to these results, the groups recommended that doctors put drug-coated-stent patients on anti-clotting drugs such as Plavix and aspirin, which they say will reduce the chances of reclogging in arteries because they slowly release medication. The advisory suggests patients take these drugs for a year after they have their drug-coated stent inserted.

However, a 2004 study conducted by Duke University researchers found that while stents reduce the need for repeat angioplasty surgery when placed in newly reopened coronary arteries, they have no impact in long-term mortality rates.

"Not only do stents offer no survival benefits whatsoever, but they also cause blood clots," said Mike Adams, a consumer health advocate. "Stents are, however, effective recruitment tools for entrapping patients on dangerous blood-thinning drugs made of the very same chemicals commonly used as rat poison," Adams said, referring to the popular blood-thinner Warfarin.

University of Wisconsin scientists originally developed Warfarin -- also known as Coumadin, Jantoven, Marevan, and Waran -- as a rat poison in 1948. After a man made a full recovery from a suicide attempt in which he used Warfarin in 1951, scientists began exploring the possibility of using it as an anti-coagulant. It was approved for that use in 1954.

A study published online on Oct. 11 by the American College of Cardiology found that 2,160 patients in the United States die from blood clots caused by drug-coated stents each year, prompting the FDA to form a panel of heart experts to discuss the safety of the devices. Of further concern, noted Adams, is the fact that six members of the FDA panel had financial ties to stent makers.

The risks have not gone unnoticed by patients. In an interview with the Associated Press, Dr. John Warner of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center said that patients were asking about the dangers of stents before doctors even bring the subject up; a positive trend, he said. He suggested that patients and doctors consider bare metal stents over drug-coated ones if the cost of the drugs or an upcoming surgery prohibited patients from using blood thinners after the stent implantation.

###

Related Articles

Heparin Blood Thinner Drug Linked to Sudden Deaths; Cheap Ingredients Imported from Chinese Chemical Factory

Additional Resources:

blood thinners
doctors
stents

Take Action: Support NaturalNews.com

Email this article to a friend

Share this article on: NewsVine | digg | del.icio.us

Permalink to this article: http://www.NaturalNews.com/021479.html

Reprinting this article: This article may not be reprintied without permission. Syndication available upon request.

Receive our Natural Health Newsletter for FREE

Subscribe now (it's free!) to win. We randomly choose a subscriber each month to send $100 in eco-home products or a RealGoods.com gift certificate (our choice). Plus, you'll receive FREE news, articles and action alerts from NaturalNews.com editors and join over 800,000 monthly readers who report extraordinary health improvements after becoming a subscriber!
  • Receive breaking news alerts on natural health solutions, renewable energy, the environment, global warming and more.
  • Receive a free instant download of our $29 Secret Sources guide that reveals top sources for little-known health and diet solutions.
Your Email Address:
Free Subscription Code:
Enter the numbers you see:
100% free of charge. Unsubscribe anytime.
Absolutely no spam. We respect your email privacy.

Recommended Special Report:

Seven Words that can Change the World
by Joseph R. Simonetta

Read this special report now...

"Seven Words That Can Change the World reveals the astonishing, simple truths that have the power to forever transform our world for the better while freeing our minds from the enslavement of limiting beliefs. This is not a text for the simple-minded; it is a guiding philosophy for the mindful, intelligent few who are wise enough to seek out -- and recognize -- the higher simplicities of truly purposeful living." - Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, editor of NaturalNews.com

More on NaturalNews.com:

Streaming Health Ranger Videos
CounterThink Cartoons
FREE Special Reports
Podcasts

Also Posted Today

Nutrient Profile: Vitamin D and its Many Functions

Former FDA Deputy Commissioner Gottlieb Now Pushing Big Pharma Drugs

Fasting One Day a Month Causes Significant Reduction in Clogged Arteries

Why the 'Best By' Date Label on Pet Foods Is So Important

Review: Zyflamend Supplement for Inflammation; Tips on Anti-Inflammatory Foods and Herbs

Beat Disease With Juice Feasting!

NEW 6-CD audio set reveals amazing new protocol for reversing cancer, diabetes, obesity, heart disease and more. Click to learn more.

Own Health Ranger Report Podcasts on Audio CD

Own the first 8 Health Ranger Report audio programs on 6 CDs. Covers weight loss, ADHD, vaccinations, processed meats, bone health and more. Click to learn more.

Featured Videos

Short clip on Aspartame
A short clip on aspartame from the documentary All Jacked Up.
Click here to view now...

Exclusive video on Aspartame
The dangers of aspartame! Exclusive interview footage from Cori Brackett of Sweet Remedy.
Click here to view now...

Exclusive Footage from All Jacked Up!
See interview footage featuring the Health Ranger in the upcoming junk food film, All Jacked Up.
Click here to view now...

Drug Ad Parody
See the Health Ranger's satire parody of Merck's cholesterol drug ad.
Click here to view now...

Free Health Reports!

Amazon Herb Company review
The pH Nutrition Guide to Acid / Alkaline Balance
Pet Food Ingredients Revealed! (shocking)
Medicine From Fish
The Water Cure
The Healing Power of Sunlight and Vitamin D

Featured CounterThink Cartoons

Meet the Hospital Staph


Pharmaceutical Vending Machines


Negotiating with Big Pharma


Health Product Companies We Recommend

Read recommendations on supplement companies, health food manufacturers and personal care product makers that you can trust. Our 100% independent review list tells you who to trust and who to avoid in the natural health industry. Click to read.
This site is part of the Natural News Network © 2008 All Rights Reserved. Privacy | Terms All content posted on this site is commentary or opinion and is protected under Free Speech. Truth Publishing International, LTD. is not responsible for content written by contributing authors. Truth Publishing sells no health or nutritional products and earns no money from health product manufacturers or promoters. The information on this site is provided for educational and entertainment purposes only. It is not intended as a substitute for professional advice of any kind. Truth Publishing assumes no responsibility for the use or misuse of this material. Your use of this website indicates your agreement to these terms and those published here. All trademarks, registered trademarks and servicemarks mentioned on this site are the property of their respective owners.