Clinical audit of anticoagulant therapy with pregnancy

Abstract

Background and aim Anticoagulant use in pregnant women should be paid great attention in both the period of pregnancy and the postpartum period. Risks and benefits to the mother and fetus should be balanced in the choice of anticoagulant therapy. Clinical audit can be defined as the process of assessment through the use of evidence-based criteria and/or the outcome of care by comparison with others. In the current study, the aim was to audit the anticoagulant therapy usage in pregnancy and compared it with the chosen international standards (RCOG standards). Patients and methods The study was done at Gynecology and Obstetrics Department of Minia General Hospital, Egypt, on 300 pregnant women on anticoagulant therapy. Results Regarding the percent of patients following the international guidelines among the 300 studied cases on anticoagulant therapy, 174 (58%) cases agreed with RCOG guidelines and 126 (42%) did not agree with RCOG guidelines. Conclusion The use of anticoagulant in pregnancy must be balanced according to the benefit and the risks of use.

Keywords

• anticoagulant therapy
• clinical audit
• pregnant women
• rcog standards