**5.5 GP IIb/IIIa inhibitors**

The platelet glycoprotein (GP) IIb/IIIa complex receptor antagonists block activity at the fibrinogen binding site on platelet (Colwell & Nesto, 2003). These agents are useful in type 2 diabetes patients with acute coronary syndrome and in those undergoing percutaneous coronary interventions (Colwell & Nesto, 2003). These agents are administered intravenously with a rapid onset of action and short half-life (Natarajan et al., 2008). Numerous studies have been performed comparing various GP IIb/IIIa inhibitors. Currently, three different GP IIb/IIIa inhibitors (abciximab, eptifibatide, and tirofiban) are approved for clinical use. This group of drugs was mainly study for secondary prevention of CVD in diabetes patients. Evidence from three trials revealed that among 1,262 diabetes patients, use of these agents was associated with reduction in mortality from 4.5% to 2.5% (p=0.031) (Bhatt et al., 2000). In another meta-analysis of six large trials, with 6,458 patients with diabetes and acute coronary syndromes, GP IIb/IIIa inhibitor therapy was associated with a significant mortality reduction at 30 days, from 6.2% to 4.6% CI(0.59-0.92, p=0.007) (Roffi et al., 2001). Nonetheless, the role of GP IIb/IIIa inhibitors in primary prevention of CVD in type 2 diabetes mellitus has not been justified; therefore it is not recommended for this purpose.
