Why the study?
Does the combination of aspirin and clopidogrel improve outcomes compared to clopidogrel alone in patients with recent TIA and ischemic stroke?
Does the combination of aspirin and clopidogrel improve outcomes compared to clopidogrel alone in patients with recent TIA and ischemic stroke?
Dual antiplatelet therapy with aspirin and clopidogrel is considered more hazardous than clopidogrel alone after recent TIA and ischemic stroke, though its role in the immediate post-event period requires further study.
May warrant clopidogrel monotherapy to limit harm; leaves open brief dual therapy in the hyperacute phase.
Antiplatelet therapy is effective for reducing the risk of recurrent stroke and other serious vascular events in patients with recent TIA and ischemic stroke. Effective antiplatelet agents include aspirin, ticlopidine, clopidogrel, dipyridamole, and the combination of aspirin and dipyridamole. The combination of aspirin and clopidogrel is more effective than aspirin in patients with acute coronary syndrome but is more hazardous than clopidogrel alone in patients with recent TIA and ischemic stroke. Further trials are needed to determine whether the combination of aspirin and clopidogrel may have a role immediately after TIA and ischemic stroke in patients with symptomatic large artery atherothromboembolism and continued for approximately 3 months before switching to less hazardous antiplatelet regimens.
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Hankey et al. (2005) studied this question.
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