Platelets
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Switching from a potent P2Y12 blocker to clopidogrel is not uncommon for antiplatelet therapy in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention. This meta-analysis aimed to investigate the efficacy and safety of this de-escalation strategy. Medical literature databases were searched for analysis comparing continued potent antiplatelet therapy and switching to clopidogrel with no language restrictions from inception to 07/May/2018. ⋯ Insignificant difference was also observed in major bleeding (0.99, 0.62-1.60; P = 0.97), all-cause death (0.95, 0.61-1.46; P = 0.81), cardiovascular death (0.66, 0.31-1.42; P = 0.29), myocardial infarction (1.12, 0.80-1.58; P = 0.51), stent thrombosis (1.09, 0.50-2.36; P = 0.83), unplanned revascularization (1.09, 0.83-1.41; P = 0.54), and stroke (1.16, 0.62-2.19; P = 0.64). In conclusion, de-escalation of antiplatelet therapy is associated with nonsignificant differences in both ischemic events and major bleeding compared with standard potent antiplatelet therapy in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention. The feasibility and even superiority of this strategy need to be elucidated by further randomized trials.
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MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNAs involved in the regulation of gene expression. Dysregulated expression of several miRNAs has been found in primary immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) suggesting that miRNAs are likely involved in the pathogenesis of ITP. We aimed to explore the differential expression of miRNAs in patients with ITP before and after starting treatment with thrombopoietin-receptor agonists (TPO-RAs) to clarify their roles in the pathophysiology of ITP, and as potential diagnostic and prognostic markers of this disorder. ⋯ ROC curve analysis showed that the combination of miR-199a-5p and miR-33a-5p could distinguish patients with ITP from controls with AUC of 0.93. This study identifies a number of differentially expressed miRNAs in ITP patients before and after initiation of TPO-RAs with potential roles in the pathophysiology, as well as with a possible utility as diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers. These interesting findings deserve further exploration and validation in future studies.