title: Successful treatment of a continuous flow left ventricular assist device thrombosis with eptifibatide.
abstract: Left ventricular assist device thrombosis is a rare but potentially lethal complication of mechanical circulatory support. Here, we present a case of successful treatment of a suspected HeartMate II thrombosis with the glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitor, eptifibatide. The patient presented with signs and symptoms of heart failure, along with acute kidney injury and hemolytic anemia that did not respond to diuresis, inotrope support, or anticoagulation. Treatment with eptifibatide resulted in marked clinical and hemodynamic improvement within 24 hrs. The patient was transitioned to clopidogrel and discharged without further incident. Eptifibatide may represent a potential therapeutic option for patients with device thrombosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy, Henry Ford Hospital, Detroit, Michigan, USA. djennin1@hfhs.org
authors.forename: Douglas L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Jennings
authors.forename: Rafael
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cabrera
authors.forename: Dee Dee
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Tita
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000077542:Eptifibatide; D006353:Heart-Assist Devices / Q000009:adverse effects*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010455:Peptides / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D010975:Platelet Aggregation Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D019039:Platelet Glycoprotein GPIIb-IIIa Complex / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*; D013927:Thrombosis / Q000188:drug therapy*
chemical_list: D010455:Peptides; D010975:Platelet Aggregation Inhibitors; D019039:Platelet Glycoprotein GPIIb-IIIa Complex; D000077542:Eptifibatide