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Published at www.nejm.org May 14, 2008 (10.1056/NEJMe0803514)

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The aprotinin story began in 1987, when investigators reported that the use of the drug in patients undergoing repeat open-heart surgery decreased the need for blood transfusion by a factor of 8.¹ In 1993, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the use of aprotinin to reduce blood loss during coronary-artery bypass grafting, and the drug became widely used in cardiac surgery. In 2006, the use of aprotinin became controversial when the drug was associated with an increased risk of renal failure, myocardial infarction, stroke, and death in a large observational study.^2,3 Two subsequent cohort studies also linked aprotinin to . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Source Information

From the Vanderbilt University Center for Education and Research on Therapeutics (W.A.R., C.M.S.); the Departments of Preventive Medicine (W.A.R.) and Medicine (C.M.S.), Vanderbilt University School of Medicine; and the Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center, Nashville Veterans Affairs Medical Center (W.A.R.) — all in Nashville.

This article (10.1056/NEJMe0803514) was published at www.nejm.org on May 14, 2008. It will appear in the May 29 issue of the Journal.

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