Here's one other reason for Lilly to be upbeat today. In a head-to-head study, the new antiplatelet drug prasugrel (being developed by Lilly and Daiichi Sankyo) in combination with aspirin outperformed the standard therapy, clopidogrel (Plavix) with aspirin. Analyzing the data from 12,844 patients in clinical trials, researchers concluded that the prasugrel group suffered fewer ischemic events--including stent thrombosis--than the Plavix group. Patients who have been given a stent to open up the flow of blood are at risk of blood clots, or stent thrombosis. They're given doses of antiplatelet drugs to prevent the clots from occurring.
"These data highlight the importance of aggressive antiplatelet therapy to reduce ischemic events in patients with acute coronary syndromes undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention," the study authors concluded. "When balancing risks and benefits of strategies to prevent ischemic events, consideration should be given to patient characteristics, including risk of bleeding and ischemic events as well as stent and procedural characteristics."
- check out the release
- read the story in the Washington Post
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