Plavix Update

Plavix may reduce death risk in patients with certain heart conditions.
HealthDay (3/22, Preidt) reported that "Plavix [clopidogrel] is of modest benefit in cutting the odds of death in patients with heart failure and heart attack who don't undergo angioplasty," according to a study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. In the study, "there were 812 deaths (32.2 percent) among heart failure patients not treated with Plavix and 709 deaths (28.1 percent) among heart failure patients treated with Plavix." The researchers also found that "there were 294 deaths (9.7 percent) among non-heart-failure patients not treated with Plavix and 285 deaths (9.4 percent) among non-heart failure patients who were given the drug." Reuters (3/23, Kelland) also covers the story.