I recently had a stent fitted and the cardiologist has asked my GP to prescribe clopidogrel for only 6 months. Almost everywhere I visit on the internet says clopidogrel is normally given for 12 months or longer.
Is 6 months the new recommendation after a stent?
Mine is an ordinarystent, not a drug-eluting type.
the usual dose is indeed for twelve months but there may well be specific reasons for your six months. The recommendation to take this drug was given by a cardiologist who has many years of training.
You can look up the NICE guidance yourself
I wonder I there was a mix up, because it was not intended for me to have a ordinary stent but one which dissolved However, when this was attempted it was discovered I had a dissection in the coronary artery, so a different stent was used. I will ask the cardiologist if his 6 month regime of clopidogrel might have been chosen for the original dissolving stent.
Thanks for the feedback.
As above.
hello cetus
I’m on Clopidogrel for life , as for k2 , stopped taking due to chest pain and could interact with medication , and yes could bring a blood clot into our body system. But your choice end of the day , plant based diet good , I’m looking at that at the moment as could reduce my medication intake. Hope all goes to plan for you , important stay focused , and get to know your own body .
Regards badger
Hi there, when you refer to K2, were you referring to vitamin D plus K ? I have been taking that for years and I’ve never been told to discontinue even though I am on clopidogrel and aspirin
Vitamin D with the K2 , but it’s down to the person, I’m on 8 lots of medication, we can all read into too much these days with the internet, and there’s always 2 to 3 opinions on different things, we all have different life styles, like some are pill poppers expecting the tablets to do the work , plant based diets which I’m looking into to hopefully have less medication, and other ways . I think because of Covid some of us have become lazy I call it lazy Covid but that’s my opinion. I found a couple of books one’s called Prevent and reverse Heart Disease by Caldwell B. Esselstyn, JrN.D .
Regards Badger
Thank you , I agree we are all different. I will look into it
Hi, If you didn't actually have a heart attack, you just had a stent because of angina etc, then six months is correct, I believe, but do check again with your doctor if you'r enot sure. And do remember to take your pill(s) at the roughly the same time every day without fail. It's very important until the stent as bedded in (so they told me in words to that effect). If you don't take it (clopidogrel) then you could get a clot forming in there, but I guess you'll know this. Best regards !
I wouldn’t rely on the internet for this or other peoples experience either, you need to discuss this with your cardiologist for your own specific needs. Only he can tell you why he gave you 6 months clopidogrel, and if he made an error regarding the drug eluding stent. Hope you get to the bottom of this to give you peace of mind, 👍
It probably depends on who your cardiologist is. I had a coronary sinus reducer inserted on 10th March. This is similar to a stent, but is designed to reduce flow in a vein rather than increase flow in an artery. At the end of the procedure two cardiologists were in the room and one asked the other what they thought about Clopidrogel administration in my case. Should it be for 3 months, 6 months? The other replied by saying does he need it at all? The first cardiologist then said perhaps just for a month then? which they agreed upon. However, I am on warfarin for a mechanical heart valve so my situation is different to yours. My main point is that there appears to be a lot of variation between different cardiologists over what they would prescribe.
I only had it for 6 months after heart attack and 2 stents
I was only 6 months also. Stent after STEMI. As per Edinburgh guidelines. Here is the linkapps.nhslothian.scot/refhel...
Ticagrelor 6 or 12 months post HA and stents
Stopping clopidogrel for five days for surgery 
Safe and useful to take K2 MK7 after stent and under clopidogrel ??
Slightly breathless after stent
Stent failing after few months . 
