15th April 2006
Look at the studies for Plavix...there are two. One is called CAPRIE and the other is called CURE.
CAPRIE shows that aspirin and plavix taken separately are equally good at preventing clots.
CURE shows that after stents taking BOTH TOGETHER increases protection by about 2% over just aspirin but look at the graph (easy to find)...the protection against clots increases over aspirin for 2 months and then remains steady. Think hard about this and you'll realize that means that ALL the extra protection has occurred in the first two months and that after 60 days the Plavix adds nothing further...identical clot rates with aspirin alone after that.
What the studies ignore is the very real 1% chance of FATAL BLEEDS...meaning death or immediate intervention with MORE than 4 units of blood. This continues month after month, year after year on PLAVIX...and some argue persuasively that the 1% is vastly understated.
I am convinced that anything more than 60 days of PLAVIX is all risk and no benefit. And the first 60 days is a toss-up.
News is also breaking about the stupidity of that loading dose of 4 or 5 plavix BEFORE they wheel you in for the angioplasty. Any perforation will probably be fatal because of immmense and unstaunchable bleeding caused by the super dose of clopidogrel (sounds like doggerel for a reason?:D:D) I guess they can rip your chest open and do bypass...imagine!
And it doesn't make it any more fun to staunch the bleeding when they pull the catheter out of your groin.
I'd LOVE to get the inside poop on the number of lawsuits filed. I have always felt that Plavix will be the next Vioxx, Baycol, (or thalidomide!)
CAPRIE shows that aspirin and plavix taken separately are equally good at preventing clots.
CURE shows that after stents taking BOTH TOGETHER increases protection by about 2% over just aspirin but look at the graph (easy to find)...the protection against clots increases over aspirin for 2 months and then remains steady. Think hard about this and you'll realize that means that ALL the extra protection has occurred in the first two months and that after 60 days the Plavix adds nothing further...identical clot rates with aspirin alone after that.
What the studies ignore is the very real 1% chance of FATAL BLEEDS...meaning death or immediate intervention with MORE than 4 units of blood. This continues month after month, year after year on PLAVIX...and some argue persuasively that the 1% is vastly understated.
I am convinced that anything more than 60 days of PLAVIX is all risk and no benefit. And the first 60 days is a toss-up.
News is also breaking about the stupidity of that loading dose of 4 or 5 plavix BEFORE they wheel you in for the angioplasty. Any perforation will probably be fatal because of immmense and unstaunchable bleeding caused by the super dose of clopidogrel (sounds like doggerel for a reason?:D:D) I guess they can rip your chest open and do bypass...imagine!
And it doesn't make it any more fun to staunch the bleeding when they pull the catheter out of your groin.
I'd LOVE to get the inside poop on the number of lawsuits filed. I have always felt that Plavix will be the next Vioxx, Baycol, (or thalidomide!)