Conditions: Diabetes Mellitus Coronary Artery Disease
Keywords: Diabetes mellitus Coronary artery disease prasugrel ticagrelor
Allocation: RANDOMIZED | Intervention model: CROSSOVER
Enrollment: 50
Healthy volunteers: no

Brief summary:
Patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) have an increased risk of adverse atherothrombotic events. This may be in part attributed to the fact that these patients have reduced response to oral antiplatelet medications, in particular the P2Y12 receptor inhibitor clopidogrel, used for secondary prevention of ischemic events. Prasugrel and ticagrelor are recently approved P2Y12 receptor inhibitors which, compared with clopidogrel, have more potent antiplatelet effects. Head-to-head comparisons between the two drugs are lacking.

Detailed description:
Patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) have an increased risk of adverse atherothrombotic events. This may be in part attributed to the fact that these patients have reduced response to oral antiplatelet medications, in particular the P2Y12 receptor inhibitor clopidogrel, used for secondary prevention of ischemic events. Upregulation of platelet P2Y12 receptor mediated signaling has been shown in DM patients and may contribute to these pharmacodynamic observations, suggesting the need for more potent P2Y12 inhibiting strategies in these patients. Prasugrel and ticagrelor are recently approved P2Y12 receptor inhibitors which, compared with clopidogrel, have more potent antiplatelet effects. Therefore, prasugrel and ticagrelor represent attractive treatment options for patients with DM. This is also supported by the DM sub-group analysis of the pivotal TRITON-TIMI 38 (Trial to Assess Improvement in Therapeutic Outcomes by Optimizing Platelet Inhibition with Prasugrel-Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction) and PLATO (Platelet Inhibition and Patient Outcomes) trials, which have led to approval of prasugrel and ticagrelor, respectively. Although results of these sub-group analysis suggest that prasugrel is associated with an enhanced benefit in DM patients, while ticagrelor effects in DM patients are consistent with the overall study population, only head-to-head comparisons between the two drugs can elucidate if these exert differential effects on platelets from DM patients. However, the pharmacodynamic studies comparing prasugrel with ticagrelor in DM patients are lacking. The ever growing DM population at high risk of recurrent atherothrombotic events underscores the need to define antiplatelet treatment strategies leading to more optimal platelet inhibition in these patients.

Arms:
arm 1: Patients randomized to prasugrel will receive prasugrel loading dose followed by maintenance dose. Randomized treatment will be maintained for 1-week (7±2 days). After completion of the 1-week treatment period, patients will discontinued the study medications for 2-4 weeks (wash-out period) and then will cross over to the alternate treatment (ticagrelor), which will be administered for 1-week. arm 2: Patients randomized to ticagrelor will receive prasugrel loading dose followed by maintenance dose. Randomized treatment will be maintained for 1-week (7±2 days). After completion of the 1-week treatment period, patients will discontinued the study medications for 2-4 weeks (wash-out period) and then will cross over to the alternate treatment (prasugrel), which will be administered for 1-week.

Interventions: intervention 1: Prasugrel intervention 2: Ticagrelor
Intervention descriptions: intervention 1: Patients receiving prasugrel will be treated with 60mg loading dose and 10mg maintenance dose intervention 2: Patients receiving ticagrelor will be treated with a 180mg loading dose and 90mg bid maintenance dose

Protocol document: