Dual antiplatelet therapy in coronary artery disease: from the past to the future prospective.

Antiplatelet therapy, the cornerstone of post coronary stenting antithrombotic therapy, reduces the rate of hard clinical endpoints in patients treated both conservatively and invasively following an acute coronary syndrome, as well as in those patients with chronic stable coronary disease who receive a coronary stent. The development of newer antiplatelet and direct anticoagulant agents provides new options in the antithrombotic management of patients with coronary artery disease, enabling different therapeutic combinations to be tailored to an individual patient's bleeding and ischemic risk profile. In this review, we will summarize the history of dual antiplatelet therapy, discuss the latest evidence and future perspectives in treating patients with coronary artery disease.