Association between Antiplatelet Therapy and Changes in Intraplaque Hemorrhage in Patients with Mild to Moderate Symptomatic Carotid Stenosis: A Longitudinal MRI Study: Cerebrovascular Diseases

Introduction: Carotid atherosclerotic intraplaque hemorrhage (IPH) predicts stroke. Patients with a history of stroke are treated with antiplatelet agents to prevent secondary cardiovascular events. A positive association between previous antiplatelet use and IPH was reported in a cross-sectional analysis. We investigated the changes in IPH over 2 years in patients who recently started versus those with continued antiplatelet use. Methods: In the Plaque at Risk (PARISK) study, symptomatic patients with 0.05). No significant associations were found between new antiplatelet use and newly developed IPH at 2 years (odds ratio [OR] = 1.0, 95% CI: 0.1–7.4) or the progression of IPH (ipsilateral: OR = 2.4, 95% CI: 0.3–19.1; contralateral: OR = 0.3, 95% CI: 0.01–8.5). Conclusion: Although the baseline association between IPH and previous antiplatelet therapy was confirmed in this larger cohort, the new onset of antiplatelet therapy after transient ischemic attack/stroke was not associated with the newly developed IPH or progression of IPH volume over the subsequent 2 years. © 2024 S. Karger AG, Basel.