Summary: In this episode of Smarter Medical Care, Hematologist/Oncologist Dr. Robert Rodvien, founder of the Coumadin Clinic at the California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco, talks about Coumadin (or Warfarin). The goal is to prevent more clotting wherever it may first have occurred, but to achieve that goal without undue risk of bleeding, Coumadin’s major side effect. It's critically important that monitoring of the blood be frequent. Interactions between Coumadin and food as well as medicines can easily increase or decrease the effect of Coumadin on the blood. Dr. Rodvien discusses some of these issues in this introduction to Coumadin.
