Objective: To investigate the feasibility of continuing warfarin when international normalized ratio (INR) was less than 2.5 before tooth extraction in the elderly.
Methods: One hundred elderly outpatients with prolong use of warfarin and maintaining INR < 2.5 before tooth extraction served as observation group, 200 elderly outpatients without taking anticoagulant and antiplatelet medicine served as control group. All the patients underwent a single non-impacted tooth extraction. Postoperative bleeding at different time was observed.
Results: There was significant difference in postoperative bleeding at 5, 10, 30 min, 24 h after extraction and there was no significant difference at 48 h between control group and observation group (P < 0.05) and no bleeding was found in either group at 48 h (incidence of bleeding were 0%).
Conclusions: It was feasible to continue warfarin for the elderly maintaining INR < 2.5 undergoing a single non-impacted tooth extraction by monitoring postoperative bleeding and hemostatic treatment measures.