When patients are admitted to hospital with a heart attack, standard practice is to put them on antiplatelet drugs, such as aspirin and clopidogrel, which improves blood flow.
Collaborative research between Victoria University and Capital and Coast District Health Board has highlighted that patients do not respond equally to the drugs.
Overseas studies have found as many as 25 to 30 percent of patients tested overseas were not receiving an adequate benefit to the drug treatment.
In New Zealand, 38 percent of patients did not have an adequate response to the drugs after a heart attack. The non-response rate for Maori and Pacific Island patients was much higher, with 57 percent not responding adequately.
“This is an important finding as Maori and Pacific Island patients have a high rate of cardiovascular disease and poor outcomes following heart attacks. This finding could partially explain these poor outcomes,” DHB cardiologist Dr Scott Harding said.
Researchers also tested a newly developed antiplatelet drug called Prasugrel, which could benefit Maori and Pacific Islanders.
