Y. Hassan1, S.W. Al-Jabi2, 3, N. Abd Aziz1, I. Looi4, S.H. Zyoud3, 5 1 Department of Pharmacy Practice, Faculty of Pharmacy, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM), Puncak Alam Campus, Bandar Puncak Alam, Selangor Darul Ehsan, 2 Clinical Pharmacy Program, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Penang, Malaysia, 3 Faculty of pharmacy, An-Najah National University, Nablus, Palestine, 4 Clinical Research Center, Hospital Pulau Pinang, 5 National Poison Center, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Penang, Malaysia Abstract BACKGROUND: Patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) are more prone to develop atherosclerotic complications including stroke. Moreover, as a primary and secondary prevention of stroke, antiplatelet therapy is recommended by clinical guidelines for patients with DM. Aims: This study aimed to determine the prevalence of antiplatelet therapy use prior to current stroke in diabetic ischemic stroke patients, to examine the factors associated with the use of this important therapy and to assess the impact of the previous use of antiplatelet therapy on ischemic stroke outcomes. METHODS: An observational study of diabetic acute ischemic stroke patients attending a Malaysian hospital during a 1-year period was carried out. Demographic information, risk factors, previous antiplatelet use and variables used to assess stroke outcomes were collected from medical records. RESULTS: Overall, 295 diabetic stroke patients were analyzed. The prevalence of previous antiplatelet use among diabetic patients was 38.3%. The independent variables associated with the previous use of antiplatelet medication were previous stroke attack (p < 0.001) and ischemic heart disease (p < 0.001). Better outcomes as measured by a minor Glasgow Coma Scale at admission (p = 0.032), and a higher Modified Barthel index at discharge (p = 0.027) were observed among patients on previous antiplatelet therapy. CONCLUSION: Our data suggest that antiplatelet therapy is under prescribed among such diabetic stroke patients, particularly in primary prevention. Effective methods to increase antiplatelet use and to enhance the adherence of clinical practice guidelines should be considered at the national and community level.

العنوان

Int J Clin Pharmacol Ther. 2011 Oct;49(10):605-13

الناشر

Dustri

بلد الناشر

ألمانيا

Indexing

Thomson Reuters

معامل التأثير

1,2

نوع المنشور

Both (Printed and Online)

المجلد

49

السنة

2011

الصفحات

605-13