A new clot-busting drug approved for use on the NHS cuts the risk of dying after a heart attack.
Brilique (ticagrelor) taken with aspirin is suitable for people who have been admitted to hospital after a heart attack or an episode of unstable angina, according to draft guidance from the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice).
The drug works by preventing the formation of new blood clots and maintaining blood flow to the heart.
Compared with another commonly-used treatment, clopidogrel, the drug cuts the risk of dying by 21%, and of suffering another cardiovascular event such as a heart attack by 16% in the following 12 months.
More than 180,000 people a year may benefit from the treatment - 70,000 with unstable angina and around 113,000 with a heart attack. The drug costs £54.60 for a pack of 56 tablets.
Dr Carole Longson, Nice health technology evaluation centre director, said: "Ticagrelor is the latest in an ever-increasing number of important new drugs and interventional techniques that have been shown to reduce deaths in patients with acute coronary syndromes.
"From the evidence considered, the independent appraisal committee concluded that, compared with clopidogrel, reductions in heart attack and death from vascular causes were significant - 16% and 21% respectively - for patients randomised to the ticagrelor group."
Patients stay on the drug, made by AstraZeneca, for up to a year. Side-effects include gastrointestinal bleeding, although there was no difference between ticagrelor and clopidogrel when it came to risk of major bleeding.
Kausik Ray, professor of cardiovascular disease prevention at St George's research centre in London, said: "Despite current treatment options, one in seven patients will die within 12 months following a heart attack.
"Ticagrelor has been demonstrated to reduce a patient's likelihood of dying from an acute coronary event, or having another heart attack or episode of unstable angina in comparison to the current standard of care, clopidogrel."