Idarucizumab for a traumatic head injury patient taking dabigatran

Background: Dabigatran is one of the four drugs currently used as a direct oral anticoagulant in Japan. Idarucizumab, which specifically targets dabigatran, was recently approved in Japan. We present a case of intracranial hemorrhage in a traumatic brain injury patient taking dabigatran who was treated by administering idarucizumab.

Case presentation: A 72-year-old man was injured in a traffic accident and was transferred to our emergency room. On arrival, his Glasgow Coma Scale score was 14 (eye, 3; verbal, 5; motor, 6), and his other vital signs were stable. Computed tomography (CT) imaging on arrival showed a small intracranial hematoma. A second CT 3 h later revealed expansion of the hematoma. We received information that he was taking dabigatran only after the second CT. Idarucizumab was then promptly administered, and emergency craniotomy for hematoma removal was performed. There was no tendency for bleeding during the operation, and blood transfusion was not required during the perioperative period. Although the patient underwent additional surgery for subdural effusion and hydrocephalus, his postoperative course was uneventful. He was transferred to a rehabilitation hospital on postoperative day 102.

Conclusion: We managed a patient taking dabigatran who suffered traumatic intracranial hemorrhage by administering idarucizumab preoperatively without the need for blood transfusion perioperatively. We suggest that idarucizumab could be a potent therapeutic bridge to definitive surgical management in such patients with traumatic brain injury who are taking dabigatran.