Intracoronary stenting without coumadin: one month results of a French multicenter study

In order to simplify post-coronary stenting treatment and to obtain a lower rate of complications, especially in bailout situations, seven French institutions treated 246 stented patients with 0.25 g/day of ticlopidine, 0.1 g/day of IV aspirin, and 2 days of heparin followed by low-molecular-weight heparin for 1 month. Fifty percent of patients had a planned stenting procedure, and 50% had an unplanned procedure, including 29 (11.8%) in bailout situations. Subacute occlusion occurred in three (1.2%) patients (one death, two non-Q-wave infarctions). During the 1 month follow-up period, another death was reported (non-stent-related), two elective coronary artery bypass grafts were performed, and three additional patients presented with non-Q-wave myocardial infarctions. Nine (3.7%) patients had a groin complication that required blood transfusion or surgical repair. These results suggest that while waiting for the technological advancements of stents, postprocedural treatment that includes a low dosage of ticlopidine, aspirin, and low-molecular-weight heparin is a very effective alternative to conventional poststenting therapy.