Inexpensive Blood-Clotting Drug Reduces Postpartum Hemorrhage Among New Mothers, Study Shows

Humanosphere: Drug effective against leading cause of maternal death, study finds
“An inexpensive and widely available drug could save the lives of thousands of women who die each year from severe bleeding after childbirth — the leading cause of maternal death worldwide, according to new study…” (Nikolau, 4/26).

New York Times: Inexpensive Drug Prevents Deaths in New Mothers, Study Finds
“…In a major six-year trial involving over 20,000 women in 21 countries, researchers showed that tranexamic acid, a little-known blood-clotter invented in the 1960s, reduced maternal bleeding deaths by a third if it was given within three hours. It costs less than $2 a dose and does not require refrigeration…” (McNeil, 4/26).

NPR: Overlooked Drug Could Save Thousands Of Moms After Childbirth
“…About 1.2 percent of women who got tranexamic acid within three hours of a hemorrhage died, compared with 1.7 percent of the women who got the placebo…” (Doucleff, 4/26).

Reuters: Cheap blood drug could prevent thousands of maternal deaths in developing world
“…TXA, which is now an off-patent generic medicine, was originally invented in the 1960s by a Japanese husband and wife research team, Shosuke and Utako Okamoto. The drug is widely used to treat excessive blood loss from major trauma injuries…” (Kelland, 4/26).

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