Ticagrelor is a novel, direct-acting, reversibly binding P2Y12 receptor antagonist. When related with clopidogrel, ticagrelor exhibits a more potent and more predictable antiplatelet effect with a faster onset and offset of action. Current guidelines give a recommendation on the use of dual antiplatelet therapy support ticagrelor 90 mg twice daily over clopidogrel 75 mg daily in addition to aspirin in CAD patients. However, increasing evidence showed ticagrelor increased the risk of bleeding. Recent studies showed that P2Y12 inhibitor monotherapy still maintain antiischemic efficacy while reducing the bleeding risk compared with DAPT. So the investigators performed this randomized, single-blind, crossover clinical trial to observe the effects of standard-dose ticagrelor and standard-dose clopidogrel on platelet reactivity in Chinese patients with stable CAD.
Dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) with aspirin and a P2Y12 inhibitor reduces thrombotic events in patients with coronary artery disease, but these benefits come at the expense of increased risk of bleeding when compared with aspirin monotherapy. Increased evidence showed that P2Y12 inhibitor monotherapy still maintain antiischemic efficacy while reducing the bleeding risk compared with DAPT. Therefore, the investigators performed this study to observe the efficacy of ticagrelor in comparison to clopidogrel in Chinese patients with stable CAD.