Please select the eligibility criteria that correspond to the clinical trial below.
Title: Fast Assessment of Stroke and Transient Ischemic Attack to Prevent Early Recurrence (FASTER)
Brief Summary: Current management of patients with TIA (transient ischemic attack) or minor stroke includes the prompt investigation and treatment in the days and weeks after the event. However, new evidence shows patients are at the highest risk of stroke in the first few days after the TIA, with 50% of strokes which happen in the three months following TIA occurring within 48-72 hours. To date, there is no evidence to guide physicians on how to safely reduce this risk.

The FASTER trial is focusing on the initial period of high risk, starting patients on stroke prevention treatments in the hours following a TIA or minor stroke. The drugs to be tested have been shown to be effective in the similar setting of cardiology, reducing recurrent cardiac events in patients with unstable angina when commenced with the same speed after an event.

All patients will be on aspirin. The trial will see if adding another drug, clopidogrel, has an additional benefit in reducing the number of strokes after TIA or minor stroke within three months of TIA or minor stroke. It will also look if the very early introduction of simvastatin, a cholesterol lowering therapy, reduces stroke after TIA or minor stroke, both by itself and in addition to clopidogrel. The final aim of the trial is to ensure that these treatments are safe to be used in this population of patients.


Options:
A: Inclusion Criteria:

* Patients with TIA or minor acute ischemic stroke (NIHSS \< 4 at the time of randomization) who must NOT be candidates for acute thrombolysis or other acute intervention indicated as the current standard of care
* Aged 40 years or older
* Patients with: (a) weakness at time of TIA/minor stroke and/or language disturbance at time of TIA/minor stroke and; (b) duration of neurological deficit (TIA) \> 5 minutes
* Patients can be randomized within 24 hours of symptom onset. Symptom onset is defined by the "last seen well" principle
* Patients must have provided written, informed consent to participate in the FASTER trial.

Exclusion Criteria:

* Patients with pure sensory symptoms, pure vertigo or dizziness, pure ataxia or pure visual loss
* Patients for whom thrombolysis or other acute intervention is indicated as the current standard of care
* Patients who are currently on statin therapy, antiplatelet therapy (not including aspirin), or long-term non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs but not COX inhibitors), or anticoagulation
* Patients who in the opinion of the site Investigator, should be commenced on statin therapy
* Patients with neurological deficit due to intracranial hemorrhage (intracranial hemorrhage, subarachnoid hemorrhage, subdural hematoma, epidural hematoma), tumor, infection or any finding not consistent with acute brain ischemia as the cause of presenting symptoms
* Presumed cardiac source of embolus (e.g. atrial fibrillation, prosthetic cardiac valve, known/suspected endocarditis)
* Patient with a concomitant acute coronary syndrome (acute myocardial infarction or unstable angina)
* Modified Rankin Score 3 or more (pre-morbid historical assessment)
* Patients in whom the qualifying event was due to a complication of cerebral angiography, a revascularization procedure or trauma
* Uncontrolled hypertension at baseline (systolic blood pressure \>180 mmHg or diastolic blood pressure \>110 mmHg), or malignant hypertension defined by brain plus acute organ involvement due to acute hypertension
* Women who are breast-feeding or pregnant. Women of childbearing potential must have a negative pregnancy test prior to randomization. Women of childbearing potential may still participate in the trial but must plan on not becoming pregnant during the course of the study and must practice a suitable method of birth control. If a patient becomes pregnant or begins breast-feeding during the study, both study drugs will be discontinued immediately, and the patient followed for the duration of the study
* Evidence of contraindication for use of Trial Medication: (i) serious systemic bleeding precluding antiplatelet therapy; (ii) hypersensitivity to aspirin, thienopyridine drugs (clopidogrel or ticlopidine) or statins; (iii) current or past history of renal insufficiency \[serum Creatinine \>150 umol\]; (iv) hepatic dysfunction indicated by any or all of the following \[ALT \>3xULN, AST \>3xULN, ALP \>3xULN\]; (v) thrombocytopenia \[platelet count \< 150 x10\^9/L\]; (vi) neutropenia \[neutrophil count \< 0.5 x10\^9/L\]; (vii) bleeding diathesis or coagulopathy indicated by any or all of the following \[INR \>1.2, PT \>1.2xULN, PTT \>1.2xULN\]
* Life expectancy of less than 90 days
* Participation in another clinical therapeutic trial (drug or device) either concurrently or within the previous 30 days, or prior participation in FASTER
* Geographical or other factors that render follow-up impractical or that render evaluation of outcome events impossible (e.g. severe dementia). Patients may be randomized who could and are willing to complete their follow-up at a participating centre
B: Inclusion criteria:

* Ischemic stroke with a brain lesion visualized by neuroimaging (either brain Computed Tomography (CT) or Magnetic Resonance Image (MRI)). The visualized stroke is a non-lacunar infarct , e.g. involving the cortex or \>1.5 cm (\>2.0 cm if measured on MRI diffusion-weighted images) in largest diameter if exclusively subcortical.Visualization by CT usually requires delayed imaging \>24-48 hours after stroke onset.
* The index stroke must have occurred either up to 3 months before randomization (Modified Rankin Scale(mRS) \<=3 at randomization) or up to 6 months before randomization (mRS \<=3 at randomization) in selected patients that are \>= 60 years plus at least one additional risk factor for recurrent stroke.
* Arterial imaging or cervical plus Transcranial Doppler (TCD) ultrasonography does not show extra-cranial or intracranial atherosclerosis with \>= 50% luminal stenosis in artery supplying the area of acute ischemia.
* As evidenced by cardiac monitoring for \>= 20 hours with automated rhythm detection, there is absence of AF \> 6 minutes in duration (within a 20 hour period, either as single episode or cumulative time of multiple episodes).

Further inclusion criteria apply.

Exclusion criteria:

* Modified Rankin Scale of \>=4 at time of randomization or inability to swallow medications.
* Major risk cardioembolic source of embolism such as: a) intracardiac thrombus as evidenced by transthoracic or transesophageal echocardiography, b) paroxysmal, persistent or permanent Atrial fibrillation (AF), c) atrial flutter, d) prosthetic cardiac valve (mitral or aortic, bioprosthetic or mechanical), e) atrial myxoma, f) other cardiac tumors, g) moderate or severe mitral stenosis, h) recent (\< 4weeks) myocardial infarction, i) valvular vegetations, or j) infective endocarditis.
* Any indication that requires treatment with an anticoagulant as per Investigator's judgment.
* History of atrial fibrillation (unless it was due to reversible causes such as hyperthyroidism or binge drinking, and has been permanently resolved).
* Other specific stroke etiology (i.e. cerebral arteritis or arterial dissection, migraine with aura/vasospasm, drug abuse).
* Renal impairment with estimated creatinine clearance (as calculated by Cockcroft-Gault equation) \<30mL/min at screening, or where Investigator expects creatinine clearance is likely to drop below 30mL/min during the course of the study.

Further exclusion criteria apply.
C: Inclusion Criteria:

-Clinical diagnosis of ischaemic stroke causing a measurable neurological deficit defined as impairment of language, motor function, cognition and/or gaze, vision or neglect. Symptoms must be distinguishable from an episode of generalised ischaemia (i.e. syncope), seizure, or migraine disorder.

Main inclusion criteria:

* Patients at risk of stroke who have had transient ischaemia of the brain or completed ischaemic stroke due to thrombosis
* Symptoms of ischaemic attack began less than 24 hours prior to study medication start, are to be present for at least 30 minutes and have not significantly improved before start of treatment
* Patients are eligible for platelet inhibiting treatment
* National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) between 5 and 20 (at pre-screening and screening)
* Actual Modified Rankin Scale (mRS) (at baseline) is worse than retrospective mRS (before stroke)
* A contraindication for stroke lysis is given
* Patients are able to give (at least oral) informed consent and to swallow either medication

Exclusion Criteria:

* Hypersensitivity to any of the components of the product or salicylates.
* Patients with active gastric or duodenal ulcers or with bleeding disorders.
* Pregnancy during the third trimester.
* Lysis therapy.
* A platelet inhibiting therapy with Acetylsalicylic Acid (ASA) doses of more than 100 mg per day, or with clopidogrel of any dose has been planned or started.
* Time of onset of stroke symptoms is unknown (when a stroke happened during night-/sleeping time, bedtime is assumed as time of onset)
D: Inclusion Criteria:

1. Provision of signed informed consent prior to any study-specific procedure
2. ≥40 years of age
3. Acute onset of cerebral ischaemia due to

   1. AIS with NIHSS ≤5. AIS is defined as acute onset of neurological deficit attributed to focal brain ischaemia, and either of the following:

      * Persistent signs or symptoms of the ischaemic event at the time o randomisation, OR
      * Acute ischaemic brain lesion documented before randomisation by computed tomography (CT) scan or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) (diffusion-weighted imaging) and that could account for the clinical presentation
   2. High-risk TIA, defined as neurological deficit of acute onset attributed to focal ischaemia of the brain by history or examination with complete resolution of the deficit, and at least one of the following:

      * ABCD2 score ≥6 and TIA symptoms not limited to isolated numbness, isolated visual changes, or isolated dizziness/vertigo
      * Symptomatic intracranial arterial occlusive disease that could account for the clinical presentation, documented by transcranial Doppler or vascular imaging and defined as at least 50% narrowing in the diameter of the vessel lumen
      * Internal carotid arterial occlusive disease that could account for the clinical presentation, documented by Doppler, ultrasound, or vascular imaging and defined as at least 50% narrowing in diameter of the vessel lumen
4. Randomisation occurring within 24 hours after onset of symptoms; for wake-up strokes (when the time of symptom onset is not known), within 24 hours from the time point at which the patient was reported to be in their normal condition
5. CT or MRI performed after symptom onset ruling out intracranial haemorrhage or other pathology, such as vascular malformation, tumour, or abscess that according

to the Investigator could explain symptoms or contraindicate study treatment

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Need for or an anticipated need for any of the following:

   1. Dual antiplatelet therapy with ASA and P2Y12 inhibitors (including patients with carotid artery stenting and percutaneous coronary intervention)
   2. Antiplatelets other than ASA (eg, GPIIb/IIIa inhibitors, clopidogrel, ticlopidine, prasugrel, dipyridamole, ozagrel, cilostazol, ticagrelor) and other antithrombotic agents with antiplatelet effects, including traditional/herbal medicine agents
   3. Anticoagulants (eg, warfarin, oral thrombin and factor Xa inhibitors, bivalirudin, hirudin, argatroban, fondaparinux, or unfractionated heparin and long-term treatment with low-molecular weight heparins). Short-term treatment (≤7 days) with low-dose low-molecular weight heparin may be used in immobilised patients at the discretion of the Investigator
2. Any history of atrial fibrillation/flutter, ventricular aneurysm, or suspicion of other cardioembolic pathology for TIA or stroke
3. Patients who should receive or have received any intravenous or intra-arterial thrombolysis or mechanical thrombectomy within 24 hours prior to randomisation
4. Planned carotid endarterectomy that requires halting investigational product within 3 days of randomisation or is expected to require unblinding of investigational product (planned carotid endarterectomy is in itself not an exclusion criterion)
5. History of previous intracranial haemorrhage at any time (asymptomatic microbleeds do not qualify), gastrointestinal haemorrhage within the past 6 months, or major surgery within 30 days
6. Patients considered to be at risk of bradycardic events (eg, known sick sinus syndrome or second- or third-degree atrioventricular block) unless already treated with a permanent pacemaker
7. Inability of the patient to understand and/or comply with study procedures and/or follow-up, in the opinion of the Investigator
8. Known hypersensitivity to ticagrelor or ASA
9. Need for or an anticipated need for oral or intravenous therapy with any of the following:

   1. Strong cytochrome P450 3A (CYP3A4) inhibitors (eg, ketoconazole, clarithromycin \[but not erythromycin or azithromycin\], nefazadone, ritonavir, atazanavir) that cannot be stopped for the course of the study
   2. Long-term (\>7 days) non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs
10. Known bleeding diathesis or coagulation disorder (eg, thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura)
11. Known severe liver disease (eg, ascites or signs of coagulopathy)
12. Renal failure requiring dialysis
13. Pregnancy or breastfeeding. Women of child-bearing potential who are not willing to use a medically accepted method of contraception that is considered reliable in the judgment of the Investigator
14. Involvement in the planning and/or conduct of the study (applies to both AstraZeneca staff and/or staff at the study site)
15. Previous enrolment or randomisation in the present study
16. Participation in another clinical study with an investigational product at any time during the 30 days prior to randomisation (regardless of when treatment with the investigational product was discontinued)

Answer: A