Dipyridamole combined with anticoagulant in prevention of early postoperative thromboembolism after cardiac valve replacement.

The preventive effect of 300 mg/day dipyridamole, plus warfarin, on the development of thromboembolism after cardiac valve replacement was evaluated. Study 1 involved 71 patients receiving dipyridamole, 100 mg t.i.d., plus warfarin and resulted in a 2.8% incidence of thromboembolism. Study 2 involved 179 patients and compared the effectiveness of slow release capsules with tablet form dipyridamole at the same dosage, both plus warfarin. No thromboembolic episodes occurred in either group. No serious side-effects of dipyridamole were seen in either study. The results suggest that both slow release and tablet form dipyridamole in combination with warfarin are useful in the postoperative management of heart valve replacement.