Warfarin has been shown in previous studies to prevent approximately 68% of strokes in atrial fibrillation, but close monitoring, drug and dietary interactions and risk of haemorrhage make it a difficult and inconvenient agent to use. Dabigatran is advantageous in many of these aspects, requiring comparatively little monitoring, having few drug interactions, being associated with an apparently decreased risk of intracranial haemorrhage relative to warfarin. 
However, anticoagulation with dabigatran is non–reversible and the increased rate of gastrointestinal adverse effects is concerning. Futhermore, dabigatran appeared to be associated with an increased risk of myocardial infarction, a finding not adequately explained in this study.
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