Fondaparinux is an anticoagulant medication chemically related to low molecular weight heparins. Fondaparinux is given subcutaneously daily for the prevention of deep vein thrombosis in patients who have had orthopedic surgery as well as for the treatment of deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism.
Fondaparinux is a synthetic pentasaccharide factor Xa inhibitor. Apart from the O-methyl group at the reducing end of the molecule, the identity and sequence of the five monomeric sugar units contained in fondaparinux is identical to a sequence of five monomeric sugar units that can be isolated after either chemical or enzymatic cleavage of the polymericglycosaminoglycans heparin and heparin sulfate (HS). Within heparin and heparin sulfate this monomeric sequence is thought to form the high-affinity binding site for the anti-coagulant factor antithrombin III (ATIII). Binding of heparin/HS to ATIII has been shown to increase the anti-coagulant activity of antithrombin III 1000 fold. In contrast to heparin, fondaparinux does not inhibit thrombin.