Thrombolytics, unlike anticoagulants and antiplatelets, will actually dissolve a clot. We are going to break them down into two categories: Direct acting and indirect acting.
Direct Acting
- Urokinase (Abbokinase) – inj – tends to be utilized when we need to open a clotted central line catheter.
- Alteplase (Activase) – inj – is used for very serious life threatening conditions such as:
- Pulmonary embolism
- Myocardial infarction: Only works for the first few hours of a heart attack. Unfortunately a lot of people are in denial in the beginning of a heart attack.
- Stroke (clot): The stroke could be caused by a clot or by the opposite, bleeding. If you use this drug in a bleeding situation, death.
Indirect Acting
- Streptokinase (Streptase) – inj – is dependent on the plasminogen in the bloodstream. Streptokinase stimulates conversion of plaminogen to plasmin. Plasmin is our bodies internal thrombolytic. Streptokinase is used for pulmonary embolism.
