Ticlopidine versus aspirin for the prevention of recurrent stroke. Analysis of patients with minor stroke from the Ticlopidine Aspirin Stroke Study.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Ticlopidine has not been formally compared with aspirin in patients with a completed stroke. We therefore performed an analysis on a subgroup of patients from the Ticlopidine Aspirin Stroke Study (TASS) with a recent minor completed stroke as the qualifying ischemic event. METHODS: This was a multicenter, double-blind, randomized trial of patients with a recent history of cerebral ischemia. Eligible patients had a qualifying minor stroke within 3 months of study entry. All patients received either 650 mg aspirin twice daily or 250 mg ticlopidine twice daily for up to 5.8 years. The primary study end point was the first occurrence of nonfatal stroke or death from any cause. A secondary end point was the first occurrence of a fatal or nonfatal stroke. RESULTS: Minor stroke was the qualifying ischemic event in 927 patients (463 received ticlopidine and 464 received aspirin). The cumulative event rate at 1 year for nonfatal stroke or death was 6.3% for patients receiving ticlopidine and 10.8% for patients receiving aspirin, a 42% risk reduction in favor of ticlopidine. For fatal or nonfatal stroke, the cumulative event rate at 1 year was 4.8% for patients receiving ticlopidine and 7.5% for those receiving aspirin, a risk reduction of 36% for ticlopidine relative to aspirin. The overall risk reductions were 22.1% for nonfatal stroke or death and 19.9% for fatal or nonfatal stroke. Adverse reactions were reported in 58% of the ticlopidine patients and 51% of the aspirin patients. CONCLUSIONS: The results in this subgroup are consistent with the overall TASS results and show that ticlopidine is somewhat more effective than aspirin for reducing the risk of stroke in patients with a completed minor stroke.