New anticoagulants (dabigatran, apixaban, rivaroxaban) for stroke prevention in atrial fibrillation.

New oral anticoagulants have been found to be as efficacious as warfarin and safer in terms of intracranial bleeding. All patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation should receive antithrombotic therapy for stroke prevention. For those at low risk, antiplatelet therapy is probably sufficient. For those at intermediate or high risk, anticoagulation is superior to antiplatelet therapy. Four oral anticoagulants are currently approved for stroke and systemic embolism prevention in atrial fibrillation: warfarin, dabigatran, rivaroxaban, and apixaban. Management of bleeding complications while on the new agents remains an area of concern and management is based on anecdotal experience and observational studies.