Bronchiectasis is a chronic debilitating condition. Pathologically, a vicious cycle of infection and inflammation exists in the permanently damaged airways with patients suffering a persistent cough, chronic daily sputum production and recurrent chest infections. Once termed an ‘orphan disease’, the prevalence of bronchiectasis has become increasingly recognised over the past few decades.
This review is based on a presentation given by Professor Schulman at the RCPE Haematology Symposium on 4 November 2011.Warfarin is the most widely used oral anticoagulant and has been available for more than 65 years. The last decade has brought a host of new orally available anticoagulants with promising features to clinical trials and some have already been approved for limited indications.