Antiplatelet therapy after PCI in patients with high risk of bleeding

Abstract

The progress of percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) over the last few decades facilitated treatment of increasingly complex patient populations. The introduction of drug-eluting stents (DESs) led to need of stronger and prolonged inhibition of platelets which in turn increased the incidence of bleeding complications. The identification and management of patients at high bleeding risk (HBR) during and after percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) is still problematic in everyday clinical practice.