Dipyridamole may be used safely in patients with ischaemic heart disease.

It is thought that up to 50% of patients with cerebrovascular disease will have concurrent ischaemic heart disease. Dipyridamole co-formulated with aspirin has been shown to increase the relative reduction in risk of second stroke in patients with prior stroke/transient ischaemic attack beyond that obtaining with aspirin alone. We have sought to resolve the question of whether dipyridamole treatment increases the risk of cardiac adverse events in patients with co-existing ischaemic heart disease.

[Does early high dosage dipyridamole in prevention of secondary stroke induce cardiac events?].

In a post hoc analysis of the European Stroke Prevention Study 2 (ESPS2), we investigated whether dipyridamole given as antiplatelet drug in patients with TIA or stroke increases the risk of cardiac events. ESPS2 was a secondary prevention trial including 6602 patients with TIA or stroke. Patients were randomized into one of four treatment arms: 2 x 25 mg acetylsalicylic acid (ASA), 2 x 200 mg slow release dipyridamole (DP), the combination of DP and ASA and placebo.

Cardiac safety in the European Stroke Prevention Study 2 (ESPS2).

The second European Stroke Prevention Study investigated the prevention of stroke and/or death in 6602 patients with transient ischaemic attack or stroke with aspirin (25 mg b.d.), dipyridamole (400 mg b.