Experimental agent better than aspirin at preventing stroke, study suggests

An investigational anti-clotting drug is safe and twice as effective as aspirin at preventing stroke or blood clots in atrial fibrillation patients who were unable to take standard drugs to prevent blood clots, study suggests. In these final results, researchers will also detail how the drug apixaban works in patients with previous stroke.

Early end to key study on benefits of niacin, a B vitamin, in keeping arteries open was premature

Heart experts are calling premature the early halt of a study on the benefits of combining extended-release niacin, a B vitamin, with cholesterol-lowering statin medications to prevent blood vessel narrowing. Cardiovascular atherosclerosis, as it is also known, is believed responsible for one in three deaths in the United States each year.