Just to inform you, finger stick machines are NOT accurate in Antiphospholipid Antibody Syndrome (APS) patients. Supporting information is here: http://www.apsfa.org/links/links22.htm .

I am a former perfusionist retired with three open-heart surgeries, Atril Fib, prosthetic Aortic valve.  I cannot do without my Philips I.N.R. machine.  My Protime is very labile and I need to make adjustments along the way. I cannot wait a one month until the next I.N.R. I have found that it is right on with the I.N.R. clinic and I take it twice a week.  My I.N.R. can go as low as 2.0 when I need to be 2.5 to 3.5.  It's simple, fast and I don't have to live in fear that I'm out of range.

I have Afib for over 20 years and about 4 years ago, while vacationing on Long Island, NY my INR went of the chart and I hit my back while sailing! After 3 painful nights trying to sleep I went to a doctor and he said have seen your back where one side had turned black from bleeding. He immediately gave me a shot of Vitamin K to conteract the cuamadin and I noticed he was using a Roche device to check my INR.

When I got home I contacted Roche's website and learned that patients could get their CoaguChek device through Medicare and ordered one immediately! They sent a retired nurse to my house with a new device and test strips to show me how to use it! I take my INR every 3 weeks and report the test results on their website and they fax my doctor. If it various from the prescribed 2 to 3, I adjust the dosage slightly myself and retest the following week to check the results.

I would highly recommend Afib patients taking there own INR as I have for over 3 years with great results and no problems! 

If dabigatran only reaches therapeutic levels 62 percent of the time (2011 study), would it not be good to measure INR every once in awhile, e.g., before a first DC cardioversion?

Gorgonzola: I'm confused by your comments; in RE-LY it was dose-adjusted warfarin that had therapeutic challenges...dabi was not measured for INR levels.