| Sally’s bleeding risk | ||
|---|---|---|
| History of haemorrhagic stroke | Yes | Patients with a past medical history of any intracranial haemorrhage should not be treated with anticoagulants. |
| History of falls | No | In general, falls are not a contra-indication to anticoagulation unless they are very frequent or involve head injury. |
| History of anaemia | No | Not unless due to ongoing bleeding. |
| History of gastrointestinal haemorrhage | No | This is a caution only. The risk of a recurrent bleed should be weighed against the benefits in terms of stroke prevention. |
| History of ischaemic stroke | No | Previous ischaemic stroke is a risk factor for another stroke (the S in CHADS2 and CHA2DS2VASc). Previous ischaemic stroke alone is enough to justify anticoagulation in AF patients. |
| Current gastrointestinal haemorrhage | Yes | Any significant ongoing bleeding is a contra-indication to anticoagulation. |
| Current gastrointestinal haemorrhage | No | Antiplatelets (and other medicines such as NSAIDS) increase the risk of a bleed and their use should be reviewed when starting an anticoagulant. They should only be continued if there is a clear clinical need. |
Page last reviewed: 29 Jul 2020
