Antiplatelet agents have a beneficial effect in reducing all cause mortality and fatal cardiovascular events in patients with IC .
BACKGROUND Peripheral arterial disease ( PAD ) is common and is a marker of systemic atherosclerosis .
Patients with symptoms of intermittent claudication ( IC ) are at increased risk of cardiovascular events ( myocardial infa rct ion ( MI ) and stroke ) and of both cardiovascular and all cause mortality .
OBJECTIVES To determine the effectiveness of antiplatelet agents in reducing mortality ( all cause and cardiovascular ) and cardiovascular events in patients with intermittent claudication .
Reduction in the need for hospitalization for recurrent ischemic events and bleeding with clopidogrel instead of aspirin. CAPRIE investigators.
BACKGROUND Repeat hospitalizations of patients with atherosclerosis represent a considerable burden on the health care system . We sought to determine whether clopidogrel compared with aspirin decreases the need for rehospitalization for ischemia and bleeding . METHODS AND RESULTS The Clopidogrel Versus Aspirin in Patients at Risk of Ischemic Events ( CAPRIE ) trial was a r and omized , blinded , multicenter , trial of 19,185 patients with atherosclerotic disease manifested as recent ischemic stroke or myocardial infa rct ion or symptomatic peripheral arterial disease . Without any double-counting of events , the number of rehospitalizations for ischemic events ( defined as angina , transient ischemic attack , or limb ischemia ) or bleeding events was determined for the entire cohort . There was a significant reduction in the total number of rehospitalizations for ischemic events or bleeding with clopidogrel use compared with aspirin ( 1502 vs 1673 ; P = .010 ) over an average of 1.6 years of treatment . This reduction in rehospitalization was consistent across individual outcomes of angina , transient ischemic attack , limb ischemia , and bleeding . Compared with aspirin , clopidogrel also result ed in a 7.9 % relative risk reduction in a combined end point of vascular death , stroke , myocardial infa rct ion , or rehospitalization for ischemic events or bleeding ( 15.1 % to 13.7 % at 1 year ; P = .011 ) . Adjusting for baseline prognostic variables , clopidogrel therapy was an independent predictor for reduction of vascular death , stroke , myocardial infa rct ion , or rehospitalization for ischemic events or bleeding ( P = .009 ) . CONCLUSIONS Treatment with clopidogrel results in a significant decrease in the need for rehospitalization for ischemic events or bleeding compared with aspirin . This meaningful end point tracks well with other , more traditional measures of outcome and has incremental value beyond such end points
Antiplatelet agents have a beneficial effect in reducing all cause mortality and fatal cardiovascular events in patients with IC .
BACKGROUND Peripheral arterial disease ( PAD ) is common and is a marker of systemic atherosclerosis .
Patients with symptoms of intermittent claudication ( IC ) are at increased risk of cardiovascular events ( myocardial infa rct ion ( MI ) and stroke ) and of both cardiovascular and all cause mortality .
OBJECTIVES To determine the effectiveness of antiplatelet agents in reducing mortality ( all cause and cardiovascular ) and cardiovascular events in patients with intermittent claudication .