The oldest and most reliable of these drugs is aspirin. Clot busters like rt-PA are effective in some, but not all, patients. For the many heart attack patients with positive troponin T levels, the search for adjunctive therapy continues. This is because clot busters are contraindicated in the majority of patients with positive troponin T levels. New drugs, such as those described in this article, prevent heart attacks from becoming larger.
Further research is needed to determine the safest and most effective clot busting therapy.
Until now, doctors believed that platelet inhibitors were not especially effective in preventing complications in patients suffering from acute coronary syndromes. Super aspirins help prevent life-threatening blood clots from forming, but unfortunately, said lead investigator Robert Harrington, M.D., their use is minimal. Only about 15 percent of patients who should receive them actually do. Troponin T is a protein that helps the heart muscle contract. Once the heart muscle starts dying, troponin T protein is released from the muscle cells and enters the bloodstream.