Cassese S, Ndrepepa G, Byrne RA, et al. - Since superior efficacy or safety of ticagrelor, as monotherapy or in combination with aspirin, was not consistently supported in randomized trials among patients with atherosclerotic artery disease, researchers analyzed evidence from relevant trials identified from Medline, EMBASE, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials and scientific session abstracts. They included trials involving patients with coronary or peripheral artery disease (with > 1,000 participants and a follow-up ≥ 3 months) randomized to ticagrelor-based or conventional antiplatelet therapies. Findings revealed that the advantage of ticagrelor-based therapies was restricted to patients treated for coronary artery disease among patients with atherosclerotic artery disease. These patients exhibited significantly attenuated risk for all-cause mortality and myocardial infarction, without excess risk of bleeding, in correlation with ticagrelor treatment.