The introduction of ticagrelor is associated with lower rates of recurrent ischemic stroke after myocardial infarction.

BACKGROUND

Previous ischemic stroke is a predictor of recurrent ischemic stroke after an acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Dual antiplatelet therapy, including a P2Y12-inhibitor, is important in secondary prevention after AMI. Ticagrelor, a P2Y12-inhibitor, is more potent than the commonly used clopidogrel. Here, we evaluated the impact of ticagrelor on the risk of ischemic stroke following AMI in patients with previous ischemic stroke.

METHODS

Data for patients with AMI that had a previous ischemic stroke were obtained from the Swedish Registry of Information and Knowledge about Swedish Heart Intensive Care Admissions. Patients were assigned to early and late cohorts, each covering a two-year time period before and after, respectively, the introduction of ticagrelor prescriptions (20 Dec 2011). Patients in the early cohort (n = 1633) were treated with clopidogrel (100%); those in the late cohort (n = 1642) were treated with either clopidogrel (66.3%) or ticagrelor (33.7%). We assessed the risk of ischemic stroke and intracranial bleeding over time with Kaplan-Meier analyses. We identified predictors of ischemic stroke with multivariable Cox regression analyses.

RESULTS

Of 3275 patients, 311 experienced ischemic stroke after AMI. Cumulative Kaplan-Meier incidence estimates of ischemic stroke within one year after AMI were 12.1% versus 8.6% for the early and late cohorts, respectively (p<0.01). Intracranial bleeding incidences (1.2% versus 1.5%) were similar between the two cohorts.

CONCLUSIONS

Ticagrelor introduction was associated with a lower rate of ischemic stroke, with no increase in intracranial bleeding, in an AMI population with a history of ischemic stroke.