Other antiplatelet medications for heart attack and unstable angina

These drugs work in various ways to prevent the formation of blood clots.

Antiplatelet medications are used for people with unstable angina or a heart attack and people with angina who have angioplasty.

You may take an antiplatelet if you cannot take aspirin.

Or, you may take antiplatelets along with aspirin.

If you had angioplasty and got a stent, you will take antiplatelet medicines to help prevent another heart attack or a stroke. You will probably take aspirin plus another antiplatelet such as clopidogrel (Plavix). If you get a drug-eluting stent, you will probably take both of these medicines for at least one year. If you get a bare metal stent, you will take both medicines for at least one month but maybe up to one year. Then, you will likely take daily aspirin long-term. If you have a high risk of bleeding, your doctor may shorten the time you take these medicines.

Antiplatelets may lower the risk of heart attack and stroke more effectively than aspirin alone in people who have coronary artery disease. One study showed that taking aspirin combined with clopidogrel (Plavix) for unstable angina or heart attack reduced the risk of death, another heart attack, or stroke by 20%.¹

One study showed that starting clopidogrel therapy before angioplasty and continuing it for at least 8 months reduced the risk of death or heart attack by about one-third when compared with aspirin alone.²

Some side effects of these antiplatelet drugs may include:

• Increased bleeding (hemorrhage) in the brain or other internal organs.
• Bleeding in the stomach or intestines.
• Increased bruising.
• Stomach irritation.
• Allergic reaction.
• Low platelet count (thrombocytopenia), low white blood cell count (neutropenia), and low red cell count (anemia).

See Drug Reference for a full list of side effects. (Drug Reference is not available in all systems.)

All antiplatelet drugs increase the risk of bleeding.

Complete the new medication information form (PDF)(What is a PDF document?) to help you understand this medication.

Citations

1. Clopidogrel in Unstable Angina to Prevent Recurrent Events (CURE) Trial Investigators (2001). Effects of clopidogrel in addition to aspirin in patients with acute coronary syndromes without ST-segment elevation. New England Journal of Medicine, 345(23): 494–502.

2. Mehta SR, et al. (2001). Effects of pretreatment with clopidogrel and aspirin followed by long-term therapy in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention: The PCI-CURE study. Lancet, 358(9281): 527–533.