[[Dabigatran]] is a reversible [[direct thrombin inhibitor]] approved for [[stroke prevention]] in patients with nonvalvular [[atrial fibrillation]]


It is being studied for various clinical indications and in some cases it offers an alternative to [[warfarin]] as the preferred orally administered anticoagulant since it does not require frequent blood tests for [[international normalized ratio]] (INR) monitoring while offering similar results in terms of efficacy. 

Dabigatran is the first oral anticoagulant approved by the Food and Drug Administration for stroke prevention in non-valvular AF, more than 50 years after warfarin was first approved. The drug has overcome many of the major shortcomings of warfarin, and more importantly has been proven to be comparable to warfarin at a dose of 110 mg two times daily and superior to warfarin at a dose of 150 mg two times daily in preventing stroke in patients with non-valvular AF
((Connolly SJ, Ezekowitz MD, Yusuf S, Eikelboom J, Oldgren J, et al. (2009) Dabigatran versus warfarin in patients with atrial fibrillation. N Engl J Med 361: 1139–1151)).

Warfarin was associated with a higher stroke and ICH risk than dabigatran
((Ho CW, Ho MH, Chan PH, Hai JJ, Cheung E, Yeung CY, Lau KK, Chan KH, Lau CP,
Lip GY, Leung GK, Tse HF, Siu CW. Ischemic stroke and intracranial hemorrhage
with aspirin, dabigatran, and warfarin: impact of quality of anticoagulation
control. Stroke. 2015 Jan;46(1):23-30. doi: 10.1161/STROKEAHA.114.006476. Epub
2014 Nov 18. PubMed PMID: 25406148.)).