Many people take cholesterol and blood pressure medicines to help lower their risk
of a heart attack or stroke. While reducing high blood pressure and cholesterol
is extremely important, it’s also important to know that blood pressure and cholesterol
medications do not directly address the formation of clots, which are the cause
of most heart attacks and strokes.
PLAVIX works to help keep platelets from sticking together and forming clots. This
enables blood to flow more easily, helping to reduce the risk of a future heart
attack or stroke.
How blood pressure and cholesterol medicines work
All blood pressure medicines work to lower blood pressure, but they do so in different
ways. Some lower blood volume, whereas others expand blood vessels or loosen the
"grip" or stress on a blood vessel. Many cholesterol-lowering drugs work by helping
to reduce the buildup of plaque and limit the production of new cholesterol. But
unlike PLAVIX, these medicines don’t directly reduce the risk of clots.
See how platelets can stick together, forming clots
Once you’ve had a heart attack or stroke your risk of another
heart attack or stroke is increased. And your
risk never goes away. That’s why PLAVIX, in combination with your other heart medicines,
as prescribed by your doctor, may be right for you.
PLAVIX is the #1 prescribed antiplatelet medicine*
For more than 11 years, doctors have written PLAVIX prescriptions to over 100 million people.
PLAVIX has been the focus of extensive research, studies, and scientific findings.
The effectiveness of PLAVIX has been proven and the safety profile supported by 3 large clinical studies involving 77,000 patients. Talk to your doctor about PLAVIX and continue
to take all your medicines as prescribed.
*IMS Health, NPA Plus™, TRxs. February 2010.
What to do next: See how different
cardiovascular medications work using the Interactive Medications Chart