THE EFFECT OF ANTIPLATELET DRUGS ON PLASMA VON WILLEBRAND FACTOR IN PATIENTS WITH CEREBRAL THROMBOSIS

Abstract

We evaluated the effect of aspirin and ticlopidine on the level of plasma von Willebrand factor (vWF), a marker of vascular endothelial damage, in patients with cerebral thrombosis. Plasma vWF was measured by ristocetin cofactor assay in the controls and the patients with cerebral thrombosis before and after oral administration of a daily 81 mg of aspirin or a daily 200 mg of ticlopidine for 4 weeks. The levels of plasma vWF were elevated in the pre-treated patients with cerebral thrombosis as compared with the controls. The vWF activities decresed in the patients after treated with daily 81 mg of aspirin or daily 200 mg of ticlopidine for 4 weeks. These results suggest that these antiplatelet drugs can prevent the vascular endothelial damage in the patients with cerebral thrombosis.