Recombinant factor VIIa and the patient with neurologic bleeding: separating fact from fiction.
Notwithstanding its limited Food and Drug Administration-approved indications, rFVIIa has rapidly gained widespread use for the treatment of a variety of hemorrhagic conditions, including intracranial bleeding from spontaneous, traumatic, surgical, and coagulopathic causes. Although it appears that the drug only minimally increases the risk of thromboembolic events, its efficacy remains in question. The idea of finding a universal cure for hemorrhage in a medication bottle remains highly appealing, but enthusiasm for the concept is no replacement for evidence. Neuroscience nurses, who are the interface between patients and rFVIIa, need to balance hope and hype until the facts are all in.
Criddle
Laura M
LM
The Laurelwood Group, Scappoose, OR, USA. lcriddle@gmail.com
D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000150:complications; D034462:Dissent and Disputes; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D017277:Drug Approval; D055317:Evidence-Based Practice; D015942:Factor VIIa / Q000191:economics / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D020300:Intracranial Hemorrhages / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000451:nursing; D019635:Neurosurgical Procedures / Q000009:adverse effects; D024802:Nurse's Role; D056687:Off-Label Use; D018579:Patient Selection; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000191:economics / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D020521:Stroke / Q000209:etiology; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014481:United States; D014486:United States Food and Drug Administration
D011994:Recombinant Proteins; C103587:recombinant FVIIa; D015942:Factor VIIa