noun
- A synthetic anticoagulant drug used to prevent blood clots and treat thrombosis; an oral anticoagulant that inhibits vitamin K-dependent clotting factors.
Usage: medical/pharmaceutical; also spelled dicoumarol; largely replaced by warfarin in modern clinical practice
Examples
- Dicumarol was one of the first oral anticoagulants developed for clinical use.
- The patient was prescribed dicumarol to reduce the risk of stroke after heart surgery.
- Dicumarol works by interfering with the synthesis of vitamin K-dependent clotting factors.
- Before warfarin became standard, dicumarol was commonly used in anticoagulation therapy.
- The discovery of dicumarol came from studying cattle that had eaten spoiled clover.