Early introduction of Heparin in DIC reduces mortality risk

A new study published in the International Journal of Clinical Practice suggests that heparin introduction during early stages of disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) might shorten patients' hospital stay and fatality rates.

A serious clinical syndrome called disseminated intravascular coagulation manifests as systemic activation of the homeostatic system, which increases thrombin deposition and produces microvascular thrombi. Heparin works well to treat hypercoagulability conditions by inhibiting thrombin. The current study by Navid Omidkhoda and colleagues attempted to synthesize and analyze the findings of cohort studies and randomized clinical trials addressing the impact of heparin and its preparations on DIC mortality and hospitalization time.

After screening the remaining 2538 articles, which numbered 3288 in total but contained 750 duplicate entries, the initial systematic literature search produced 3288 articles. A total of 62 articles were reviewed through the complete texts after the screening of titles and abstracts resulted in the exclusion of 2473 records, leaving 65 articles available for retrieval. Three of these articles were not retrievable.

The key findings of this extensive review:

• Eight papers were qualified to be included in this analysis out of 3288 publications.
• Six RCTs and two retrospective cohort studies with 950 people who had DIC diagnoses were found in this analysis.
• Four trials found that heparin had a substantial impact on DIC mortality.
• In three trials, heparin served as the control group.

In conclusion, it can be put forth that giving heparin and its preparations to DIC patients may shorten their stay in the hospital and lower their death rate, especially if they receive them early in the course of their illness.

Reference: 

Omidkhoda, N., Abedi, F., Ghavami, V., Rahimi, H., Samadi, S., Arasteh, O., & Mohammadpour, A. H. (2022). The Effect of Heparin and Its Preparations on Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation Mortality and Hospitalization: A Systematic Review. In A. Mansour (Ed.), International Journal of Clinical Practice (Vol. 2022, pp. 1–9). Hindawi Limited. https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/2226761