The effect of epsilon aminocaproic acid and tranexamic acid on thrombus size and strength in a simulated arterial aneurysm

Abstract

✓ An arterial sac was created in rats by ligating the abdominal aorta, and the size and strength of the thrombus that formed in the sac were studied in the rats whose drinking water contained one of two antifibrolytic agents, 5% epsilon aminocaproic acid (EACA), or 1%, 2.5%, or 5% tranexamic acid (trans-AMCHA). The thrombus in the rats treated with 5% EACA, although no larger, was able to resist an intra-aortic pressure of 80 mm Hg, which was 2.5 times as much as in untreated animals. The weight of the thrombus was the same in rats that received 1% trans-AMCHA as in controls, slightly more in those receiving 2.5% trans-AMCHA, and 2.5 times greater with 5% trans-AMCHA. In the latter group the thrombus could resist an intra-aortic pressure eight times greater than that withstood by the thrombus in control animals. This evidence suggests that treatment with antifibrinolytic drugs may preserve the size and strength of the thrombus in a saccular aneurysm which has recently hemorrhaged.