During the past decade, remarkable progress has been made in the development of new drugs to treat thrombotic and cardiovascular diseases, the number one cause of mortality worldwide. In Anticoagulants, Antiplatelets, and Thrombolytics, leading experts with established records of discovery and invention highlight the latest developments in antithrombotics and provide experimental methods for the discovery of new and improved anticoagulants. Among the cutting-edge developments reviewed are the novel usage of low molecular weight heparins, such antithrombin agents as hirudin, and such antiplatelet drugs as the GPIIb/IIIa inhibitors and ADP-receptor antagonists. Additional innovations discussed include aspirin and clopidogrel, the expanded use of polytherapeutic approaches, antiproteases (factors IIa, Xa, and VIIa), tissue-factor targeting, platelet-receptor targeting, and antithrombin III modulation. The authors also define the clinically relevant in vitro and in vivo models of thrombosis and hemostasis that led to these advances and that will surely aid in the discovery of the next generation of antithrombotics.
Up-to-date and forward-looking, Anticoagulants, Antiplatelets, and Thrombolytics illuminates the latest developments in the field of thrombosis and provides both basic and clinical investigators a broad array of successful experimental methods for the discovery and development of novel drugs to treat thrombotic and cardiovascular diseases.