Meta-analysis: Effect of Patient Self-testing and Self-management of Long-Term Antico

[yotphix]

http://www.annals.org/content/154/7/472.abstract
Anyone else see this from the Annals of Internal Medicine. This is just an abstract, which is free. The actualy article requires a subscription. The long and short of it though, is that patient self monitoring presents no increased risk of bleeding events, and reduces risk of thrombo-embolic events by 40%!

 

[Protimenow]

There are a few published research papers that come to similar conclusions. Patient self-testing can result in patients being in range more often than lab testing. This just makes sense -- if you're able to accurately test more often than people normally do at labs, you can make adjustments (or not) based on medical advice or perhaps dosing charts.

Some doctors still don't want to give up control over dosing or testing, but these papers should put many of those objections to rest. Some doctors are concerned that their patients can't learn to accurately self-test -- and there are certainly people who aren't good candidates for self-testing -- but I suspect that this is probably a pretty small minority.

More papers like the one above, and increased availability of home-testing meters and supplies may help reduce the reluctance by doctors to prescribe home testing (and perhaps even home management).