TCTMD -- Giving patients a 600-mg loading dose of clopidogrel in the cath lab after diagnostic angiography to establish the need for percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) yields outcomes comparable to routine preloading, according to a study published in the August 10, 2010, issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. The wait-and-see approach to clopidogrel administration avoids unnecessary bleeding risk in patients for whom bypass surgery or medical therapy is deemed more appropriate than PCI.
