Plavix

[Kurtis]

I recently got off plavix, (2 1/2) weeks ago and yesterday I experienced severe chest pain, so severe I screamed several times.  The pain started on the right side of my chest when I had bent over and then I had to sit down because the pain continued.  The pain then shifted over to the left side and all throughout my chest.  I called my cardiologist and he told me to go to the hospital, which I did.  They evaluated me over night and only did some blood tests.  They concluded that I did not have a heart attack.  However, I have a large stent in my major coronary artery that was placed there 1 year ago due to a partially blocked artery and an aortic anurism in a different artery that was very close to exploding, had I not gone into the cardiologist last year.  I initially went into the cardiologist due to chest pains that continued to occur while working and they were occurring while I was lifting things and bending over.  I have another job where I have to lift heavy things and bend over a lot.  I am concerned that my stent may be blocking or something else may be going on.  I have an appointment with my cardiologist today.  I just read an article on plavix that states a lot of people are having heart attacks, dying, etc., within 3 months after stopping it, whether they were on it for 3 months, 6 months, or a year.  I'm concerned that this was a possible warning that this may be what may be happening to me.  Would you suggest I have another angioplasty done to rule out different things?


This discussion is related to Non-cardiac surgery after Taxus Stent and Plavix.

[ed34]

When plavix is stopped, I don't think it causes an existing stent to block. There is no evidence to suggest there is any benefit for taking plavix for more than a year, and this is the protocol which still stands in the UK. I've had 10 stents and stopped plavix after a year each time, with no stents becoming blocked. There is also a suggestion that plavix does absolutely nothing for women. There are other medical conditions which can mimic heart issues very closely, especially if something is pushing on the vagus nerve.

[ed34]

One of the blood tests they would have performed would have been a troponin test, to see if your cardiac enzymes were elevated. This is taken 12 hours minimum after your pains started. If the results were negative, then your heart muscle is not being damaged.

[John_in_NC]

Did your doctor have you increase your aspirin regiment when you went off Plavix?

[tomah]

What kind of stent do you have?  Medicated or non-medicated?  My husband had his first heart attack at age 49.  He had 4 stents put in.  He was on Plavix for a year - then his cardio took him off.  5 months later he had another heart attack.  He is doing fine, but they are now telling us that he will probably be on Plavix for the rest of this life.  That is fine with us - I would hate to worry about another clot forming.  All of his stents are the medicated ones.  Good luck to you - and I would certainly ask for another cath so they can see what is going on.