When the words Vitamin K Antagonists appear before you on your computer screen, you mind automatically zooms in on those nasty body clots that can form throughout the length and girth of your body. Many of us have heard what a blood clot is but have never really attempted to closely study and know the condition as well as its VKA medication used for treating blood clotting. Fortunately, we also supply VKA right here on this website!
What Is a Blood Clot?
Let’s begin by looking first at the condition of blood clotting. Essentially a blood clot is a clump of blood that has altered form from a liquid to a thicker, gel-like semi-solid.
It’s viewed as a needed process that can prevent you from losing too much blood at certain instances when you are suddenly faced with a cut or other injuries that cause blood to spill.
The danger that’s usually associated with a blood clot is that sometimes when it forms inside one of your veins, it won’t always return to its liquid form on its own.
This situation can become very dangerous and ins some cases can even prove life-threatening.
When a blood clot stays where it formed and doesn’t move, it won’t prove harmful to you, however, chances are that it may move and this is what makes it dangerous.
If a blood clot breaks free and travels through your veins to your heart or lungs, it can get lodged in them and stop your blood flow in what is known in the medical world as a medical emergency!
How Many Types of Blood Clots are there?
The entire substance of your circulatory system consists of a network of vessels called veins and arteries which all perform the important task of transporting blood throughout your entire body.
It’s in the veins and arteries that blood clots have a propensity to form. An arterial clot is formed when a blood clot forms inside an artery.
This is an emergency situation that urgently requires medical attention, as this type of clot usually causes symptoms to appear immediately after it forms.
The symptoms caused by an arterial clot can include severe pain or paralysis of certain parts of your body, or both, and it can also lead to a heart attack or stroke.
A venous clot on the other hand is a blood clot that takes place in a vein and have the propensity to slowly build up over a period of time but, like arterial clots can also be life- threatening.
The most serious type of venous clot is known by the name of thrombosis.
The Deep Vein Thrombosis
When a clot inside a vein that’s located very deep inside your body forms, it’s called a deep vein thrombosis. Usually, the most common place for this type of blood clot to occur is in one of your legs, but it’s not limited to just the legs.
Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) can also occur in your lungs, arms, pelvis, lungs, and even in your brain.
The Drug Treatment for Blood Clots
Vitamin K antagonists (VKA) are a class of substances that have the ability to reduce blood clotting. These antagonists do so by reducing the action of Vitamin K.
In fact, they don’t directly antagonize the action of vitamin K as understood in the pharmacological sense, but rather, they trigger the recycling of vitamin K.
Essentially, they are taken as anticoagulant medications for preventing thrombosis, and in pest control as rodenticides.
How Vitamin K Antagonists Works
VKA drug medications tend to deplete the active status of vitamin K by preventing the enzyme vitmin K epoxide reductase and hence the recycling of the inactive vitamin K epoxide back to the active reduced form of vitamin K.
Moreover the drugs are similar in structure to vitamin K and hence act as competitive inhibitors of the enzyme VK epoxide reductase.
In reality, the name “vitamin K antagonist” is the wrong term to use because the drugs don’t directly antagonize the action of vitamin K pharmacologically speaking, but rather the recycling of vitamin K.
Incidentally, vitamin K is needed for the correct production of certain proteins that are involved in the process of blood clotting.
The Most Common Form of VKAs
The more accurate name of Coumarins, which are the most popularly used VKAs is 4-hyroxycoumarins and warfarin is the most commonly used VKAs.
Historically, warfarin was once used as rodenticide, but later made a change to become a pharmaceutical medication.
More Info about VKAs
Vitamin K belongs to a group of vitamins that are that are usually found in green vegetables, while two other common types of Vitamins K1 (photonadione) and K2 (menaquinone) are more commonly used as supplements.
Vitamin K is essential to the body for its blood clotting propensity, its ability to help bone building, and other valuable processes.
It’s usually found in leafy green vegetables that include broccoli and Brussels sprouts, and is a derivative of the German word “Koagulationsvitamin.”
Efficacy of VKAs
The effectiveness of VKA has resulted in the treatment of:
- Bleeding disorder in newborns with low amounts of vitamin K (hemorrhagic disorder). The administering of vitamin K1 by mouth to newborns or a vitamin injection into the muscle helps to stop bleeding. Injections work best, but they need to be given by a healthcare expert.
- Patients with low levels of blood clotting protein prothorombin (hypoprothrombienemia). Taking vitamin K1 by mouth or intravenously has the propensity to stop and treat bleeding disorders in people with low prothrombin (plasma protein) levels. Injections should be given only by a healthcare expert.
- A rare inherited bleeding problem known as ‘vitamin K-dependent clotting factors deficiency’ or VKCFD). Vitamin K taken by mouth or intravenously helps to stop bleeding in patients with VKCFD. Only a healthcare professional can give intravenous products.
- A reversal of the blood thinning effects of warfarin. Ingesting vitamin K1 by mouth or by intravenous injection will reverse the effects of blood thinner warfarin. Intravenous product injections can be given only by a healthcare expert.
Vitamin K Side Effects
When taken by mouth in line with prescribed doses the two vitamin K forms of vitamin K1 and vitamin K2 when taken as prescribed.
The dose for vitamin K1 is usually 10 mg taken daily and the dose for vitamin K2 is 45 mg also taken daily.
Both have been found efficacious for up to 2 years and while it’s generally tolerated very well, some patients have complained of upset stomach or diarrhea.
When used as a topical medication for applying on the skin, vitamin K1 is safe enough possible for users who apply it as a cream that contains a low ingredient of 0.1% vitamin K1.
Bottom line
Sometimes it’s difficult to fully grasp the nature and causes of blood clotting and the working dynamics of the drug medication Vitamin K Inhibitors in treating this condition. It’s even more amazing to find that blood clotting shows the ability of VKAs to coagulate and actually prevent the loss of precious blood. To top everything off all you need to do is browse through this very website to find exactly which VKA you want. If you are looking for an online pharmacy to purchase Medications, you should give this one a try, as we have had positive experiences making purchases here.