scholarly journals Safety and Efficacy of Intensive vs. Guideline Antiplatelet Therapy in High-Risk Patients with Recent Ischemic Stroke or Transient Ischemic Attack: Rationale and Design of the Triple Antiplatelets for Reducing Dependency after Ischaemic Stroke (TARDIS) Trial (ISRCTN47823388)

2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 1159-1165 ◽  
Author(s):  
CJEM ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (S1) ◽  
pp. S40
Author(s):  
A. Verma ◽  
A. Kapoor ◽  
J. Kim ◽  
N. Kujbid ◽  
K. Si ◽  
...  

Background: Canadian Stroke Guidelines recommend that Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA) patients at highest risk of stroke recurrence should undergo immediate vascular imaging. Computed tomography angiography (CTA) of the head and neck is recommended over carotid doppler because it allows for enhanced visualization of the intracranial and posterior circulation vasculature. Imaging while patients are in the emergency department (ED) is optimal for high-risk patients because the risk of stroke recurrence is highest in the first 48 hours. Aim Statement: At our hospital, a designated stroke centre, less than 5% of TIA patients meet national recommendations by undergoing CTA in the ED. We sought to increase the rate of CTA in high risk ED TIA patients from less than 5% to at least 80% in 10 months. Measures & Design: We used a multi-faceted approach to improve our adherence to guidelines including: 1) education for staff ED physicians; 2) agreements between ED and radiology to facilitate rapid access to CTA; 3) agreements between ED and neurology for consultations regarding patients with abnormal CTA; and 4) the creation of an electronic decision support tool to guide ED physicians as to which patients require CTA. We measured the rate of CTA in high risk patients biweekly using retrospective chart review of patients referred to the TIA clinic from the ED on a biweekly basis. As a balancing measure, we also measured the rate of CTA in non-high risk patients. Evaluation/Results: Data collection is ongoing. An interim run chart at 19 weeks shows a complete shift above the median after implementation, with CTA rates between 70 and 100%. At the time of submission, we had no downward trends below 80%, showing sustained improvement. The CTA rate in non-high risk patients did also increase. Disucssion/Impact: After 19 weeks of our intervention, 112 (78.9%) of high risk TIA patients had a CTA, compared to 10 (9.8%) in the 19 weeks prior to our intervention. On average, 10-15% of high risk patients will have an identifiable lesion on CTA, leading to immediate change in management (at minimum, an inpatient consultation with neurology). Our multi-faceted approach could be replicated in any ED with the engagement and availability of the same multi-disciplinary team (ED, radiology, and neurology), access to CTA, and electronic orders.


2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 294-302 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yasuhiro Kawabata ◽  
Norio Nakajima ◽  
Hidenori Miyake ◽  
Shunichi Fukuda ◽  
Tetsuya Tsukahara

Purpose Carotid artery stenting (CAS) is a valuable alternative to carotid endarterectomy, especially in high-risk patients. However, the reported incidences of perioperative stroke and death remain higher than for carotid endarterectomy, even when using embolic protection devices (EPDs) during CAS. Our purpose was to evaluate 30-day major adverse events after CAS when selecting the most appropriate EPD. Methods We reviewed the clinical outcomes of 61 patients with 64 lesions who underwent CAS with EPDs. Patients who underwent CAS associated with thrombectomy and who had a preoperative modified Rankin scale score >3 were excluded from the analysis. The EPD was selected based on symptoms, carotid wall magnetic resonance imaging and lesion length, and we analyzed combined 30-day complication rates (transient ischemic attack, minor stroke, major stroke or death). Results Forty-nine patients were men and 12 were women. The median age was 72 years (range: 59–89 years) and 44 lesions were asymptomatic. A filter-type EPD was selected in 23 procedures, distal-balloon protection in 14 procedures and proximal-occlusive protection in 27 procedures. Two patients (3.1%) experienced a transient ischemic attack and one patient (1.6%) had a minor stroke within 30 days of the procedure. No patients experienced procedure-related morbidities (modified Rankin score >2) or death. Conclusions The perioperative stoke rate was low when we selected a proximal-occlusive-type EPD in high-risk patients with vulnerable carotid artery disease. Our algorithm for EPD selection was an effective tool in the perioperative management of carotid artery stenosis.


Author(s):  
Hemang B Panchal ◽  
Tejaskumar Shah ◽  
Mukesh Singh ◽  
Sandeep Khosla ◽  
Vijay Ramu ◽  
...  

Background: Dual antiplatelet therapy with aspirin and clopidogrel is the cornerstone of treatment to prevent major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) in patients following percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). In high-risk patients requiring long-term anticoagulant, the current literatures have controversial results in preventing MACE and bleeding events with the use of triple therapy with aspirin, clopidogrel and warfarin compared to dual antiplatelet therapy following PCI. The purpose of this meta-analysis was to compare the safety and efficacy of triple therapy with dual therapy following PCI in high-risk patients requiring long term anticoagulation. Methods: A literature search identified 4 prospective and 4 retrospective studies with total of 2439 patients requiring long term anticoagulation undergoing PCI. End points measured were bleeding events, deaths, ischemic stroke, myocardial infarction, stent thrombosis and MACE. The odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were computed and two sided alpha error <0.05 considered as a level of significance. Results: In contrast to dual antiplatelet therapy, patients on triple therapy with anticoagulant had significantly lower stent thrombosis (OR: 0.45, CI: 0.21-0.94, p=0.03) and ischemic stroke (OR: 0.30, CI: 0.16-0.56, p<0.001) (Fig 1 - Zone A is dual therapy group, zone B is triple therapy group). No significant difference was found between two groups in overall bleeding events (OR: 1.57, CI: 0.87-2.85, p=0.14), major bleeding events(OR:1.21, CI: 0.57-2.59, p=0.62), deaths (OR:0.89, CI: 0.5-1.58, p=0.69), myocardial infarction (OR:1.31, CI: 0.85-2.02, p=0.22) and MACE (OR:0.61, CI:0.20-1.82, p=0.37). Conclusions: Our meta-analysis suggests that the triple therapy with anticoagulant does not increase bleeding compared to dual antiplatelet therapy. Moreover, triple therapy decreases stent thrombosis and ischemic stroke following PCI in patients requiring long-term anticoagulants. Our study did not show any difference in mortality between two groups. Triple therapy may be a favorable strategy following PCI in high-risk patients requiring long-term anticoagulation. The randomized control clinical trials are needed for further evaluation of long-term outcomes.


2020 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johny Nicolas ◽  
Usman Baber ◽  
Roxana Mehran

A P2Y12 inhibitor-based monotherapy after a short period of dual antiplatelet therapy is emerging as a plausible strategy to decrease bleeding events in high-risk patients receiving dual antiplatelet therapy after percutaneous coronary intervention. Ticagrelor With Aspirin or Alone in High-Risk Patients After Coronary Intervention (TWILIGHT), a randomized double-blind trial, tested this approach by dropping aspirin at 3 months and continuing with ticagrelor monotherapy for an additional 12 months. The study enrolled 9,006 patients, of whom 7,119 who tolerated 3 months of dual antiplatelet therapy were randomized after 3 months into two arms: ticagrelor plus placebo and ticagrelor plus aspirin. The primary endpoint of interest, Bleeding Academic Research Consortium type 2, 3, or 5 bleeding, occurred less frequently in the experimental arm (HR 0.56; 95% CI [0.45–0.68]; p<0.001), whereas the secondary endpoint of ischemic events was similar between the two arms (HR 0.99; 95% CI [0.78–1.25]). Transition from dual antiplatelet therapy consisting of ticagrelor plus aspirin to ticagrelor-based monotherapy in high-risk patients at 3 months after percutaneous coronary intervention resulted in a lower risk of bleeding events without an increase in risk of death, MI, or stroke.


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