ANTICOAGULANT MAY HELP OPEN ARTERIES AFTER STROKE

Encysive's drug Argatroban, approved to prevent blood clots in heart attack victims, may also help open blocked arteries in stroke patients, according to a study published in the Aug. 14 issue of Archives of Neurology.

Argatroban inhibits thrombin, an enzyme that causes blood clotting. Ischemic strokes -- the most frequently occurring type of stroke -- happen when a blood clot blocks an artery and stops blood flow to the brain. Some stroke patients are treated with intravenous recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rtPA) to dissolve the clot and open the artery, but not all patients respond to rtPA. Researchers from the University of Texas Medical School at Houston found that Argatroban in combination with rtPA may help open arteries in stroke patients that do not respond to rtPA alone.

Fifteen stroke patients were given a large dose of Argatroban followed by a 48-hour infusion. Within two hours, the arteries were completely open in six of the patients and partially open in four others.

A second phase of the trial in which 50 patients will be enrolled is under way, researchers said in a statement.