Dr Johanne Silvain (University Hospitals Pitié Salpêtrière, Paris, France) disucusses the results of Assessment of Loading With the P2Y12 Inhibitor Ticagrelor or Clopidogrel to Halt Ischemic Events in Patients Undergoing Elective Coronary Stenting (ALPHEUS). This is the first properly sized trial comparing ticagrelor to clopidogrel in the setting of elective percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and is especially designed to show a reduction in periprocedural events, a surrogate end point for mortality.

Questions:

1. What is the background of this trial?
2. What was the design, patient population and endpoints?
3. What were the key results?
4. What conclusions can be made?
5. What are the next steps?
6. What are the 'take-home' messages for clinicians?

Recorded remotely from Paris, 2020.

Interviewer: Victoria Perroud
Recording editor: Natascha Wienand