5 #AHA24 ScientificSessions.org Lp(a) Toolkit for Healthcare Professionals High levels of plasma lipoprotein(a) (Lp(a)) are independently associated with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) and increased risk of myocardial infarction, peripheral arterial disease, and stroke. Learn more in this toolkit for healthcare professionals. Lp(a) Survey for Healthcare Professionals We invite you to take part in a brief survey designed to assess your knowledge of Lp(a) and help us understand your practice. Your responses will help the American Heart Association shape future educational activities that drive further awareness of Lp(a) screening and overall ASCVD risk management. Novartis is proud to support the American Heart Association’s Lp(a) Awareness and Testing Initiative. Find out how Lp(a) impacts your patients Lifelong Learning is a trademark of the AHA. Unauthorized use prohibited. WF650001 10/24 Paid Advertisement WF_650001_IPPC_PPD_date_Jr_Print_Ad_03kk.indd 1 10/8/24 11:31 AM Aspirin’s staying power Will newer treatments become the go-to antiplatelet therapy? For antiplatelet therapies, aspirin has been the gold standard for decades. But in recent years, other treatments, such as P2Y12 receptor inhibitors (ticlopidine, clopidogrel, ticagrelor, prasugrel), have made inroads amid a growing push toward keeping patients on antiplatelet treatments for shorter periods. Carlo Patrono, MD, FESC, said newer generations of stents designed using polymer materials have reduced the risk of coronary atherothrombosis, so the duration needed for antiplatelet treatment is shorter. That’s why P2Y12 blocker treatments are beginning to rise in popularity — they can be used when stopping dual antiplatelet therapy after PCI, especially in patients at higher risk for bleeding. Patrono, an adjunct professor of pharmacology at the Catholic University School of Medicine in Rome, will be one of several speakers discussing the past, present and future of antiplatelet therapy in Saturday’s session, “Blood Fuels the Heart: The Discovery, Development and Future of Antiplatelet Therapy in Cardiovascular Disease.” Despite the availability of newer treatments, Patrono said he believes aspirin is here to stay because no other treatment has been deemed superior by the Food and Drug Administration or the European Medicines Agency. “There is a disproportionate marketing and publishing pressure behind the newer P2Y12 inhibitors compared to aspirin that may eventually tilt the balance between the unfashionable old and the fashionable new,” he said. “Novel antiplatelet agents targeting a different pathway of platelet activation and aggregation may well come along in the near future, but they are likely to be developed on top of aspirin because of its established efficacy and safety record.” Aspirin has survived as a firstchoice antiplatelet drug 125 years after its initial marketing as an analgesic and anti-inflammatory agent, and Patrono said it isn’t going away any time soon for several reasons. “First, it has a unique mechanism of action that, together with simple pharmacokinetics, makes aspirin ideally suited to act as an antiplatelet agent,” he said. “The second factor is the discovery of a mechanism-based biomarker for dose-finding studies in health and disease that guided the choice of the right dose to maximize efficacy and minimize toxicity,” he said. “The third factor is the unusual clinical development of low-dose aspirin driven by the medical/scientific community and characterized by a very large number of investigatorinitiated, randomized clinical trials spanning the whole cardiovascular risk continuum.” In fact, Patrono said ongoing research has shown that aspirin may have new uses far beyond acting as a cardioprotective treatment. The medical community cannot underestimate “the importance of independent clinical research that was responsible for the development of low-dose aspirin as a lifesaving antithrombotic agent,” he said, “and is currently driving its evaluation in the prevention of cancer initiation and progression.” Other speakers scheduled to take part in the session are Barry Coller, MD, David Rockefeller professor of medicine at Rockefeller University in New York City, and Haydar Satar Ali, MD, a fellow at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta. UPCOMING SESSION Blood Fuels the Heart: The Discovery, Development and Future of Antiplatelet Therapy in Cardiovascular Disease 1:30-2:45 p.m. | Saturday, Nov. 16 S401A-C Patrono
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