[Anticoagulation for atrial fibrillation : the future has begun].

According to new criteria based on the CHAD(2)DS(2)-VASc score, the threshold for administering anticoagulation therapy for atrial fibrillation patients is being increasingly lowered. With the development of new anticoagulants, more therapy options are available. Currently, vitamin K antagonists are still the standard treatment. However, this therapy is problematic for some patients. Because of the increased bleeding risk and need for continuous blood tests to monitor coagulation, many patients needing anticoagulation therapy are not treated. The new anticoagulants apixaban, rivaroxaban and dabigatran were developed with the goal of avoiding these problems. Dabigatran has already been approved for thromboembolism prophylaxis for patients with atrial fibrillation. All three substances do not require routine control blood tests. Whether the costs saved by this together with the prevention of ischemic and bleeding events justify the higher price of these drugs compared to vitamin K antagonists needs to be examined by socioeconomic studies.