Xeralto or Elequis?

I will be switching from warfarin to either xeralto or elequis. I'm having difficulty staying in the therapeutic range with warfarin. The cardio is pushing xeralto. He gave me a card for a free months supply and indicated that I could have a second one. The elequis is about half the price of xeralto with my pharmacy coverage. Additionally in a recent post Shannon indicated that there seemed to be fewer problems with elequis than xeralto. So fewer problems and half the price or go with the xeralto with up to 2 months free. I don't expect to be on an AC for more than a few more months but you never know. Shannon is the difference between the two significant? Anyone using either long term with a recommendation? Thanks for any input. Dennis

Dennis,

There isn't a major difference between the two, both are Factor Xa inhibitors with a similar overall profile. Eligius seems to have a slight but notable advantage in overall performance and actually ranked superior to warfarin and not sit non-inferior in a number of metrics. If you take those metrics at face value which isn't always totally warranted. The one minor disadvantage with Eliguis is that you have to take it twice a day, but that too can become an advantage in this period without an effective reversal agent for either in the field, in that the shorter half life of Eliguis means less time they have to maintain your blood volume with transfusions and the like in the event of a serious bleeding incident before you start to clot naturally again.

I would be more prone to Eliguis longer term of the current options, assuming you are not doing any sky diving or roller hockey :-) but if you tolerate Xeralto fine and are more compliant with once a day dosing then thats a decent choice too.

Shannon

I hope this helps you decide. I have been taking eliquis for maybe a year now without any issues of any kind. All the best to you in this and all things.

PeggyM

I decided on Xeralto because it is 1X a day. Dr. Natale gave me a choice between Xeralto or Elequis and I chose Xeralto for 2 reasons;

.1 It is a tier 2 drug with my private insurance company were Elequis is a tier 3 meaning Elequis is more expensive and
.2 Xarelto is taken only 1X a day with the evening meal.

I have had no issues with Xeralto. Before Xeralto, I was taking Pradaxa but Dr. Natale is not a fan of Pradaxa.

Dennis,
We have the same insurance so you can get it for $30 for 90 days by getting a discount card.

[www.xareltohcp.com]

McHale

I've been on Xarelto since last September and have no known side effects or problems.

I have an appt. with Dr. Barrett on April 8th and will see if he has a different opinion or newer information that might make me rethink that - but for now, I"m doing fine with the Xarelto. (of course, I"m hoping that I might be able to get off of blood thinners once they get the results of my upcoming TEE, but know that my chances for that aren't super high...)

It sounds like it may not really matter which one you choose in terms of the efficacy...so I guess you can decide based on preference of once or twice/day, and price.

Barb

Thank you all for the imput. I'v dedided to go with the Xeralto. After my first ablation i used it for several months and had no issues. Using McHales link i was able to get enrolled for a Xeralto pass. With this pass you pick up the Xeralto at the pharmacist for $10. The maker of Xeralto pays the other $90. I can do this 12 times. Presumably this can be renewed after the 12th time. The 12 hr life span of the Elequis is tempting from a safety point of view. If I had to use an AC long term I would consider switching to Elequis for that reason.
Barb i recently saw Dr Barrett and although I didn't ask for his opinion about Xeralto vs Elequis he was clearly OK with Xeralto. All the best to you on April 8th.

Hi Dennis,

I've taken Xarelto for exactly one year with no issues or events. Dr. Natale kept me on Xarelto before, during, and after my ablation that I had three months ago, no complications. I also have the Xarelto card and have been paying $10 a month this entire last year. This month I received a letter from Xarelto Carepath informing me that I can get another card, keeping my $10 co-pay, for the next year! Very cool, as without the card I would be paying a $65 co-pay!

For what it's worth...."Top Doctors concerned over new Blood Thinners". This is dated though being almost 2 years old.

[www.huffingtonpost.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/01/2014 01:53AM by ron.