Xarelto has proved to reduce the risk of recurrent venous thromboembolism (VTE), blood clots, in patients who are also suffering from morbid obesity.
The Jenssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson discovered that Xarelto (rivaroxaban) has the safety and effectiveness with less health care resource utilization when compared to warfarin.
"This is the first large-scale, real-world study to evaluate a direct oral anticoagulant (DOAC) in morbidly obese patients with VTE, and the first to identify health care resource utilization and medical costs in this population," Alex C. Spyropoulos, M.D., Professor of Medicine, The Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine, Hofstra University, Northwell Health at Lenox Hill Hospital, said in a press release. "We now know from this research that rivaroxaban is as effective and safe as dose-adjusted warfarin when treating morbidly obese patients, without the need for routine anti-Xa measurements, and with significantly lower health care resource utilization. Physicians should feel confident in prescribing rivaroxaban for managing VTE in this population."
Almost 40 percent of the population of the United States is considered to be obese, with 8 percent of those being morbidly obese.
"Obesity affects millions of Americans and is a significant risk factor for VTE and NVAF," Paul Burton, M.D., Ph.D., FACC, Vice President, Medical Affairs, Internal Medicine, Janssen Scientific Affairs, LLC, said in a press release. "These real-world studies, coupled with the consistent PK/PD and clinical data for Xarelto in obese patients with VTE or NVAF, underpin the broad clinical utility of Xarelto and provide clinicians with the evidence to consider an alternative option to warfarin."
