Journal of Invasive Cardiology

While clinical trials provide answers for what is best in a large well selected population, extrapolation of these results to an individual patient defines the synergy of the art and science of medicine. Whether to minimize an ischemic event at all cost by using GPI and placing him/her at a higher risk for bleeding or making the opposite trade by using bivalirudin to minimize bleeding risk should not be a polarized debate. An anticoagulation strategy guided by a careful evaluation of the individual patient’s risk for bleeding and ischemic events can help the operator tailor the right drug for the right patient.

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From the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, and VA Ann Arbor Health Care System, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Disclosure: P. Meier is supported by a research fellowship grant by the Swiss National Research Foundation SNF and SSMBS.

Address for correspondence: Hitinder Gurm, University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center, 2A394, 1500 E. Medical Center Drive, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5853. E-mail: hgurm@med.umich.edu

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