Drug-drug interactions between clopidogrel and novel cardiovascular drugs

The combination of aspirin and the thienopyridine clopidogrel is a cornerstone in the prevention of atherothrombotic events. These two agents act in concert to ameliorate the prothrombotic processes stimulated by plaque rupture and vessel injury complicating cardiovascular disease. Guidelines recommend the use of clopidogrel in patients with acute coronary syndromes and in those undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention, and the drug remains the most utilized P2Y12 receptor inhibitor despite the fact that newer antiplatelet agents are now available. In recent years, numerous studies have shown inconsistency in the efficacy of clopidogrel to prevent atherothrombotic events. Studies of platelet function testing have shown variability in the response to clopidogrel. One of the major reason for this phenomenon lies in the interaction between clopidogrel and other drugs that may affect clopidogrel absorption, metabolism, and ultimately its antiplatelet action. Importantly, these drug-drug interactions have prognostic implications, since patients with high on-treatment platelet reactivity associated with reduced clopidogrel metabolism have an increased risk of ischemia. Previous systematic reviews have focused on drug-drug interactions between clopidogrel and specific pharmacologic classes, such as proton pump inhibitors, calcium channel blockers, and statins. However, more recent pieces of scientific evidence show that clopidogrel may also interact with newer drugs that are now available for the treatment of cardiovascular patients. Accordingly, the aim of this review is to highlight and discuss recent data on drug-drug interactions between clopidogrel and third-generation proton pump inhibitors, pantoprazole and lansoprazole, statins, pitavastatin, and antianginal drug, ranolazine.