Curated News
By: NewsRamp Editorial Staff
November 10, 2025
Diabetes Patients Fare Better with Prasugrel Than Ticagrelor After Stent
TLDR
- Prasugrel offers better outcomes than ticagrelor for diabetic patients with stents, providing a clinical advantage in reducing heart attacks, strokes, and death rates.
- The TUXEDO-2 study compared prasugrel and ticagrelor in 1,800 diabetic patients with stents, finding prasugrel had lower rates of heart attack, stroke, bleeding, and death.
- This research helps improve treatment for diabetic patients with heart stents, potentially saving lives and reducing complications through better medication selection.
- In a surprising finding, prasugrel outperformed ticagrelor in diabetic stent patients, challenging the assumption that these antiplatelet medications are interchangeable.
Impact - Why it Matters
This research matters because it challenges current medical practice where two commonly prescribed blood-thinning medications are often used interchangeably in diabetic patients receiving stents. For the millions of people worldwide with diabetes who undergo coronary stent procedures, the choice between prasugrel and ticagrelor could significantly impact their risk of serious complications including heart attack, stroke, bleeding events, and even death. Diabetes patients already face elevated cardiovascular risks, and this study suggests that selecting the more effective antiplatelet medication could meaningfully improve their outcomes and quality of life following stent placement. The findings emphasize the importance of personalized medicine in cardiovascular care and may influence future treatment guidelines for this vulnerable patient population.
Summary
New research presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2025 reveals significant differences between two commonly used antiplatelet medications in diabetic patients who have undergone stent placement. The TUXEDO-2 study, conducted across 66 healthcare sites in India with 1,800 adults having Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes and multivessel coronary disease, compared prasugrel and ticagrelor - both P2Y12 inhibitors typically prescribed alongside aspirin as part of dual antiplatelet therapy following percutaneous coronary intervention procedures. The findings challenge current medical practice where these medications are often used interchangeably, showing that prasugrel demonstrated superior outcomes across multiple measures including heart attack, stroke, bleeding complications, and death rates.
Led by Dr. Sripal Bangalore of NYU Grossman School of Medicine, the study specifically examined patients who received drug-eluting stents during percutaneous coronary intervention strategies to clear arterial blockages. After one year of treatment, the prasugrel group showed a composite outcome rate of 14.23% compared to 16.57% in the ticagrelor group, with lower rates across all individual endpoints: non-fatal heart attack (5.21% vs 5.96%), major bleeding (7.14% vs 8.41%), and death (3.67% vs 5.03%). The researchers expressed surprise at these results, having initially hypothesized that ticagrelor would perform equally well or better than prasugrel in this patient population with complex coronary disease.
The study's implications are particularly important given that current 2025 ACC/AHA/ACEP/NAEMSP/SCAI Guidelines for Acute Coronary Syndromes recommend at least one year of dual antiplatelet therapy following drug-eluting stent implantation. While the research is preliminary and requires peer-reviewed publication, it suggests that medication selection in diabetic patients undergoing stent procedures should be more carefully considered rather than treating these antiplatelet options as interchangeable. The findings highlight the need for personalized treatment approaches in cardiovascular care, especially for diabetic patients who represent a high-risk population for coronary complications and stent-related issues.
Source Statement
This curated news summary relied on content disributed by NewMediaWire. Read the original source here, Diabetes Patients Fare Better with Prasugrel Than Ticagrelor After Stent
