Aspirin Plus Clopidogrel May Reduce the Risk of Early Neurologic Deterioration in Ischemic Stroke Patients Carrying CYP2C19*2 Reduced-function Alleles

Objectives: The mechanisms of early neurologic deterioration (END) and prevention strategies for END are not completely understood. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between CYP2C19*2 variants and END, and the effectiveness of antiplatelet therapy for prevention of END according to CYP2C19*2 genotypes in patients with ischemic stroke (IS).

Materials And Methods: This was a two-center, randomized controlled study. Between August 2009 and December 2011, 570 IS patients were randomly assigned to clopidogrel plus aspirin group (n = 284) or aspirin alone group (n = 286). Platelet aggregation and platelet-leukocyte aggregates were measured before and after 7-10 days of treatment. CYP2C19*2 (rs4244285) genotypes were examined using mass spectrometry. The primary outcome was END during the 10 days of admission.

Results: Among the 570 patients, 121 (21.2%) patients suffered from END. Carriers of CYP2C19*2 reduced-function alleles were associated with higher incidence of END (26.8% in carriers vs. 16.6% in noncarriers, P = 0.004). The incidence of END was lower in the clopidogrel plus aspirin group than in the aspirin alone group (17.6 vs. 24.8%, P = 0.032). Stratified analyses revealed that clopidogrel plus aspirin could be more effective in reducing END than aspirin alone for carriers of CYP2C19*2 reduced-function alleles (18.8 vs. 34.9%, P = 0.006). However, there was no significant difference in incidence of END between dual therapy group and monotherapy group for noncarriers (16.7 vs. 16.6%, P = 0.998).

Conclusions: Dual therapy with clopidogrel and aspirin may be adequate for prevention of END in carriers of CYP2C19 reduced-function alleles, but not for noncarriers. Our findings may be useful to guide precise antiplatelet therapy, and decrease the risk of END.