Late stent thrombosis (> 1 year) following clopidogrel withdrawal after brachytherapy treatment: need to assess aspirin resistance?

We report on a patient presenting with late thrombosis of a stent 15 months after being treated with intracoronary brachytherapy. It occurred 17 days after clopidogrel withdrawal while maintaining treatment with aspirin. At the time of stent thrombosis, evaluation of platelet aggregation was performed, revealing a suboptimal response to aspirin. Pathophysiological insights of aspirin resistance and clinical implications are reviewed. Copyright 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc.