In this trial, there was a suggestion of benefit with clopidogrel treatment in patients with symptomatic atherothrombosis and a suggestion of harm in patients with multiple risk factors. Overall, clopidogrel plus aspirin was not significantly more effective than aspirin alone in reducing the rate of myocardial infarction, stroke, or death from cardiovascular causes. (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00050817.).

Among patients with stable atherosclerotic vascular disease, those assigned to rivaroxaban (2.5 mg twice daily) plus aspirin had better cardiovascular outcomes and more major bleeding events than those assigned to aspirin alone. Rivaroxaban (5 mg twice daily) alone did not result in better cardiovascular outcomes than aspirin alone and resulted in more major bleeding events. (Funded by Bayer; COMPASS ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01776424 .).

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Across the entire spectrum of ACS and in general clinical practice, this model provides excellent ability to assess the risk for death and can be used as a simple nomogram to estimate risk in individual patients.

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Objective To develop a clinical risk prediction tool for estimating the cumulative six month risk of death and death or myocardial infarction to facilitate triage and management of patients with acute coronary syndrome.

The term acute myocardial infarction (MI) should be used when there is evidence of myocardial necrosis in a clinical setting consistent with acute myocardial ischemia. Under these conditions any one of the following criteria meets the diagnosis for MI: ● Detection of a rise and/or fall of cardiac biomarker values [preferably cardiac troponin (cTn)] with at least one value above the 99th percentile upper reference limit (URL) and with at least one of the following: y Symptoms of ischemia. y New or presumed new significant ST-segment–T wave (ST–T) changes or new left bundle branch block (LBBB). y Development of pathological Q waves in the ECG. y Imaging evidence of new loss of viable myocardium or new regional wall motion abnormality. y Identification of an intracoronary thrombus by angiography or autopsy. ● Cardiac death with symptoms suggestive of myocardial ischemia and presumed new ischemic ECG changes or new LBBB, but death occurred before cardiac biomarkers were obtained, or before cardiac biomarker values would be increased. ● Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) related MI is arbitrarily defined by elevation of cTn values (5 99th percentile URL) in patients with normal baseline values (99th percentile URL) or a rise of cTn values 20% if the baseline values are elevated and are stable or falling. In addition, either (i) symptoms suggestive of myocardial ischemia or (ii) new ischemic ECG changes or (iii) angiographic findings consistent with a procedural complication or (iv) imaging demonstration of new loss of viable myocardium or new regional wall motion abnormality are required. ● Stent thrombosis associated with MI when detected by coronary angiography or autopsy in the setting of myocardial ischemia and with a rise and/or fall of cardiac biomarker values with at least one value above the 99th percentile URL. ● Coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) related MI is arbitrarily defined by elevation of cardiac biomarker values (10 99th percentile URL) in patients with normal baseline cTn values (99th percentile URL). In addition, either (i) new pathological Q waves or new LBBB, or (ii) angiographic documented new graft or new native coronary artery occlusion, or (iii) imaging evidence of new loss of viable myocardium or new regional wall motion abnormality. Criteria for prior myocardial infarction Any one of the following criteria meets the diagnosis for prior MI: ● Pathological Q waves with or without symptoms in the absence of non-ischemic causes. ● Imaging evidence of a region of loss of viable myocardium that is thinned and fails to contract, in the absence of a non-ischemic cause. ● Pathological findings of a prior MI

Background-The use of multiple antithrombotic drugs and aggressive invasive strategies has increased the risk of major bleeding in acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients. It is not known to what extent bleeding determines clinical outcome. Methods and Results-Using Cox proportional-hazards modeling, we examined the association between bleeding and death or ischemic events in 34 146 patients with ACS enrolled in the Organization to Assess Ischemic Syndromes and the Clopidogrel in Unstable Angina to Prevent Recurrent Events studies. Patients with major bleeding were older, more often had diabetes or a history of stroke, had a lower blood pressure and higher serum creatinine, more often had ST-segment changes on the presenting ECG, and had a 5-fold-higher incidence of death during the first 30 days (12.8% versus 2.5%; PϽ0.0001) and a 1.5-fold-higher incidence of death between 30 days and 6 months (4.6% versus 2.9%; Pϭ0.002). Major bleeding was independently associated with an increased hazard of death during the first 30 days (hazard ratio, 5.37; 95% CI, 3.97 to 7.26; PϽ0.0001), but the hazard was much weaker after 30 days (hazard ratio, 1.54; 95% CI, 1.01 to 2.36; Pϭ0.047). The association was consistent across subgroups according to cointerventions during hospitalization, and there was an increasing risk of death with increasing severity of bleeding (minor less than major less than life-threatening; P for trendϭ0.0009). A similar association was evident between major bleeding and ischemic events, including myocardial infarction and stroke. Conclusions-In ACS patients without persistent ST-segment elevation, there is a strong, consistent, temporal, and dose-related association between bleeding and death. These data should lead to greater awareness of the prognostic importance of bleeding in ACS and should prompt evaluation of strategies to reduce bleeding and thereby improve clinical outcomes.