Tranexamic acid (TXA) is a medication used to treat or prevent excessive blood loss from major trauma, post partum bleeding, surgery, tooth removal, nose bleeds, and heavy menstruation. It is also used for hereditary angioedema. It is taken either by mouth or injection into a vein.
Side effects are rare. Some include changes in color vision, blood clots and allergic reactions. Greater caution is recommended in people with kidney disease. Tranexamic appears to be safe for use during pregnancy and breastfeeding. Tranexamic acid is in the antifibrinolytic family of medications.
Tranexamic acid was discovered in 1962 by Utako Okamoto. It is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines, the most effective and safe medicines needed in a health system. Tranexamic acid is available as a generic medication. The wholesale cost in the developing world is about 4.38 to 4.89 USD for a course of treatment. In the United States a course of treatment costs 100 to 200 USD.
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Medical uses
Tranexamic acid is frequently used following major trauma. Tranexamic acid is used to prevent and treat blood loss in a variety of situations, such as dental procedures for hemophiliacs, heavy menstrual bleeding, and surgeries with high risk of blood loss.
Trauma
Tranexamic acid has been found to decrease the risk of death in people who have significant bleeding due to trauma. Its main benefit is if taken within the first three hours. It has been shown to reduce death due to any cause and death due to bleeding. Further studies are assessing the effect of tranexamic acid in isolated brain injury.
Vaginal bleeding
Tranexamic acid is used to treat heavy menstrual bleeding. When taken by mouth it both safely and effectively treats regularly occurring heavy menstrual bleeding and improves quality of life. Another study demonstrated that the dose does not need to be adjusted in females who are between ages 12 and 16.
Child birth
Tranexamic acid is used after delivery to reduce bleeding, often with oxytocin. Death due to postpartum bleeding was reduced in women receiving tranexamic acid.
Surgery
- Tranexamic acid is used in orthopedic surgery to reduce blood loss, to the extent of reducing or altogether abolishing the need for perioperative blood collection. It is of proven value in clearing the field of surgery and reducing blood loss when given before or after surgery. Drain and number of transfusions are reduced.
- In surgical corrections of craniosynostosis in children it reduces the need for blood transfusions.
- In spinal surgery (e.g., scoliosis), correction with posterior spinal fusion using instrumentation, to prevent excessive blood loss.
- In cardiac surgery, both with and without cardiopulmonary bypass (e.g., coronary artery bypass surgery), it is used to prevent excessive blood loss.
Dentistry
In the United States, tranexamic acid is FDA approved for short-term use in people with severe bleeding disorders who are about to have dental surgery. Tranexamic acid is used for a short period of time before and after the surgery to prevent major blood loss and decrease the need for blood transfusions.
Tranexamic acid is used in dentistry in the form of a 5% mouth rinse after extractions or surgery in patients with prolonged bleeding time; e.g., from acquired or inherited disorders.
Hematology
There is not enough evidence to support the routine use of tranexamic acid to prevent bleeding in people with blood cancers. However, there are several trials that are currently assessing this use of tranexamic acid. For people with inherited bleeding disorders (e.g. von Willebrand's disease), tranexamic acid is often given. It has also been recommended for people with acquired bleeding disorders (e.g. direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs)) to treat serious bleeding.
Other uses
- In hereditary angioedema
- In hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia - Tranexamic acid has been shown to reduce frequency of epistaxis in patients suffering severe and frequent nosebleed episodes from hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia.
- In melasma - tranexamic acid is sometimes used in skin whitening as a topical agent, injected into a lesion, or taken by mouth, both alone and as an adjunct to laser therapy; as of 2017 its safety seemed reasonable but its efficacy for this purpose was uncertain because there had been no large scale randomized controlled studies nor long term follow-up studies.
- In hyphema - Tranexamic acid has been shown to be effective in reducing risk of secondary hemorrhage outcomes in patients with traumatic hyphema.
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Contraindications
- Allergic to tranexamic acid
- History of seizures
- History of venous or arterial thromboembolism or active thromboembolic disease
- Severe renal impairment due to accumulation of the drug, dose adjustment is required in mild or moderate renal impairment
Adverse effects
Common side effects include:
- Headaches (50.4 - 60.4%)
- Back aches (20.7 - 31.4%)
- Nasal sinus problem (25.4%)
- Abdominal pain (12 - 19.8%)
- Diarrhea (12.2%)
- Fatigue (5.2%)
- Anemia (5.6%)
Rare side effects include:
- Pulmonary embolism
- Deep vein thrombosis
- Anaphylaxis
- Visual disturbances
These rare side effects were reported in post marketing experience and frequencies cannot be determined.
Special populations
- Tranexamic acid is categorized as pregnancy category B. No harm has been found in animal studies.
- Small amounts appears in breast milk if taken during lactation. If it is required for other reasons, breastfeeding may be continued.
- In kidney impairment, tranexamic acid is not well studied. However, due to the fact that it is 95% excreted unchanged in the urine, it should be dose adjusted in patients with renal impairment.
- In liver impairment, dose change is not needed as only a small amount of the drug is metabolized through the liver.
Mechanism of action
Tranexamic acid is a synthetic analog of the amino acid lysine. It serves as an antifibrinolytic by reversibly binding four to five lysine receptor sites on plasminogen or plasmin. This prevents plasmin (antiplasmin) from binding to and degrading fibrin and preserves the framework of fibrin's matrix structure. Tranexamic acid has roughly eight times the antifibrinolytic activity of an older analogue, ?-aminocaproic acid.
Society and culture
TXA was discovered in 1962 by Utako Okamoto. It has been included in the WHO list of essential medicines. TXA is inexpensive and treatment would be considered highly cost effective in high, middle and low income countries.
Brand names
Tranexamic acid is marketed in the U.S. and Australia in tablet form as Lysteda and in Australia and Jordan it is marketed in an IV form and tablet form as Cyklokapron, in the UK as Cyclo-F and Femstrual, in Asia as Transcam, in Bangladesh as Traxyl, in India as Pause, in South America as Espercil, in Japan as Nicolda, in France and Romania as Exacyl and in Egypt as Kapron. In the Philippines, its capsule form is marketed as Hemostan and In Israel as Hexakapron.
Approval
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved tranexamic acid oral tablets (brand name Lysteda) for treatment of heavy menstrual bleeding on 13 November 2009.
In March 2011 the status of tranexamic acid for treatment of heavy menstrual bleeding was changed in the UK, from PoM (Prescription only Medicines) to P (Pharmacy Medicines) and became available over the counter in UK pharmacies under the brand names of Cyklo-F and Femstrual, initially exclusively for Boots pharmacy, which has sparked some discussion about availability. (In parts of Europe it had then been available OTC for over a decade.) Regular liver function tests are recommended when using tranexamic acid over a long period of time.
References
External links
- CRASH-2: tranexamic acid and trauma patients
- Tranexamic acid, UK patient information leaflet
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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