Updated clinical guidelines on Effient treatment for ACS patients

Effient® (prasugrel) tablets, a new antiplatelet medicine, was added as a treatment option in two clinical guideline updates: one for patients receiving percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and a second one for patients with ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), or severe heart attack. The two 2009 focused updates for the clinical guidelines, jointly developed by the American Heart Association (AHA), the American College of Cardiology (ACC), and the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI), were published online today in Circulation, the Journal of the American College of Cardiology and Catheterization and Cardiovascular Interventions.

Approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in July 2009, Effient is indicated to lower the chance of having another thrombotic cardiovascular event such as heart attack or stent-related blood clot for patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS) who are managed with angioplasty and stenting, also known as PCI.

Effient received the Class I recommendation from the Guidelines Committee in both sets of the guideline updates. Class I means that a given "procedure/treatment should be performed/administered" to patients, given it was found to be "useful/ effective/beneficial". Consistent with the Effient label, both guidelines provide recommendations to avoid the use of Effient in patients with a prior history of TIA or stroke.

"It is important that the cardiology community has updated clinical guidelines that include the latest treatment options like Effient for treating ACS patients managed with angioplasty and stenting," said LeRoy LeNarz, M.D., senior medical director of cardiovascular care, Lilly USA, LLC. "By recommending Effient, these guidelines recognize an important new treatment for ACS-PCI patients, particularly for those with severe heart attacks who are at increased risk of suffering future cardiovascular events."

"The Guidelines Committee classified prasugrel, marketed in the United States as Effient, with a Class I rating," said Rogelio Braceras, M.D., senior medical director for Daiichi Sankyo, Inc. "Based on the latest clinical studies and scientific evidence, these guidelines provide clear recommendations for how Effient should be incorporated into medical practice to help reduce risk of cardiovascular events such as heart attacks and blood clots forming around stents."