Background: Since its discovery, oral anticoagulants (OA) have been increasingly studied and used to treat different diseases. However, OA may cause adverse drug interactions that bring risks for patients. Objective: To identify the emergency room doctors' level of knowledge about OA and their drug-related or non-drug-related interactions, and to verify if emergency room doctors are prepared to integrate their theoretical knowledge and the routine of the emergency room. Method: A questionnaire was administered to 100 emergency room doctors working at two public hospitals and three private hospitals in Curitiba, Brazil. The objective of the questionnaire was to find out: if emergency room doctors asked patients about the use of OA, which OA doctors were familiar with, which control exam would be appropriate, what doctors knew about the synergism with OA, how complications were managed, and if doctors were interested in knowing more about OA. Results: Sixty percent of the doctors reported to ask patients about the use of OA, 81% had insufficient knowledge regarding the synergism between some substances and OA, 15% were unaware of which exams are used to follow up anticoagulated patients, 50.7% did not know the commercial names of OA, 4% were unaware of OA antidotes, and 92% revealed interest in improving their knowledge about OA. Conclusion: The number of emergency room doctors who were familiar with OA is low, as well as the number of those who know how to manage anticoagulated patients. The percentage of doctors who did not ask patients about the use of OA and who were unaware of the principles of drug synergism is high, and most of them were interested in improving their knowledge about anticoagulants.
Anticoagulants; emergency medical services; drug interactions