Clinical use of novel antithrombotic agents in the management of acute coronary syndromes.

Among patients with ST elevation-acute coronary syndrome (ACS) novel thrombolytic agents can be given as a bolus (reteplase, tenecteplase) and their delivery is easier and may shorten the time to treatment, providing the ideal tool in the pre-hospital setting. Reinfarction after thrombolysis occurs in the 3-5% range in all major trials. Reinfarction after thrombolysis rate may be reduced by abciximab and enoxaparin. However major hemorrhage is doubled by abciximab (but not by enoxaparin). When primary angioplasty is preferred to thrombolysis, adjunctive abciximab decreases the need for urgent target vessel revascularization. A whole body of literature tells that aspirin is not enough in patients without ST elevation ACS. Most patients benefit from concomitant clopidogrel. High-risk patients are candidate to the use GP IIb-IIIA blockers, particularly if they need coronary angioplasty. All patients with glomerular filtration rate > or = 30 ml/min should receive low molecular weight heparin. Evidence for that is mainly driven by studies using enoxaparin.