Aprotinin is indicated for prophylactic use to reduce blood loss and blood transfusion in adult patients at high risk of major blood loss undergoing isolated cardiopulmonary bypass graft surgery. Aprotinin should only be used after careful consideration of the benefits and risks, and alternative treatments.1
Aprotinin is a serine protease inhibitor that has effects on coagulation, fibrinolysis, and platelet function.1,2
These mechanisms of action help mitigate tissue reperfusion injury and changes in the patient’s coagulation cascade and systemic inflammatory response, post isolated CABG.2
Aprotinin has a greater range of interactions in the coagulation and tissue factor pathways than tranexamic acid.2
To find out more about the different parts of the pathway, hover your cursor over the information icons in the diagram below
Aprotinin inhibits both the contact activation and tissue factor pathways helping to reduce the risk of bleeding.2
Aprotinin was first licensed for use in reducing blood loss in 1987.3 In 2007, the company responsible for marketing aprotinin suspended the licence following the release of some preliminary data suggesting an increased mortality in aprotinin treated patients in the Blood Conservation Using Antifibrinolytics in a Randomized Trial (BART) trial, published in May 2008.3-5 The results from this study have since been questioned due to several methodological deficiencies.
The licence suspension for aprotinin was lifted in 2013, supported by additional data and new analyses.4,6
Full analysis of the BART dataset showed:5
A meta-analysis that included the BART data further explored the safety profile of aprotinin, finding:6
These findings are consistent with other leading reviews of aprotinin, which have observed:
Renal impairment: Renal dysfunction could be triggered by aprotinin, particularly in patients with pre-existing renal dysfunction. Careful consideration of the balance of the risks and benefits is therefore advised before administration of aprotinin to patients with pre-existing impaired renal function or those with risk factors (such as concomitant treatment with aminoglycosides).1
Aprotinin use does not independently increase the risk of renal failure in patients undergoing cardiac surgery.10 A transient rise in creatinine observed in some patients receiving aprotinin has been shown to normalise at post-operative day 3.10
A transient rise in creatinine observed in patients receiving aprotinin resolves to normal levels by post-operative day 3, at which point there was no difference between treatment arms.10
The 2017 European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery (EACTS)/European Association of Cardiothoracic Anaesthesiology (EACTA) joint guidelines recommend the use of aprotinin to reduce bleeding, transfusions of blood products and reoperations for bleeding.9
References