Association of clopidogrel pretreatment with mortality, cardiovascular events, and major bleeding among patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Context: Clopidogrel pretreatment is recommended for patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS) and stable coronary artery disease who are scheduled for percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), but whether using clopidogrel as a pretreatment for PCI is associated with positive clinical outcomes has not been established.

Objective: To evaluate the association of clopidogrel pretreatment vs no treatment with mortality and major bleeding after PCI.

Data Sources: MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Controlled Trials Register databases, and reference lists of qualifying articles.