Use of Eptifibatide

Eptifibatide is a type of "blood thinner" used to prevent blood clotsthat can cause a heart attack or other serious blood flow problems. It is used before certain procedures used to open up the blood vessels in the heart (e.g., balloon angioplasty, coronary stent placement, percutaneous coronary intervention-PCI, coronary artery bypass graft-CABG). It is also used with other medications (e.g., nitrates, beta blockers) to stop or prevent a heart attack in people with continuing chest pain when the above procedures cannot be done. It is usually used with heparin and aspirin.Eptifibatide works by preventing platelets in the blood from sticking to each other. When platelets stick to each other, they may form blood clots that may cause a heart attack or cause the opened blood vessel in the heart to close back up.