Dresden researchers test new strategy for preventing recurrent strokes: BMFTR provides €3m in funding for POTENTIAL study

Every year, there are around 270,000 people in Germany who suffer ischemic strokes. They account for 80 to 85 percent of all cerebral infarctions, making them the most common type. In about one third of those affected, it is a recurrent event. The risk of recurrent stroke is highest in the days following the initial stroke. Under the direction of Prof. Timo Siepmann, Consultant and Head of Stroke Unit at the Clinic and Polyclinic for Neurology at TU Dresden’s Faculty of Medicine and the Carl Gustav Carus University Hospital, the multi-center POTENTIAL study is now investigating a new strategy for secondary prevention. The Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) is providing EUR 3 million in funding for the first phase of the project, which has a total budget of EUR 5.9 million.

An ischemic stroke occurs when a blood vessel in the brain is suddenly blocked by a blood clot. The aim of acute care is to reopen the blood vessel as quickly as possible, thus restoring the blood and oxygen supply to the affected brain tissue. This can be done either with medication that dissolves the blood clot or with a catheter that removes the clot directly from the blood vessel. To reduce the risk of another stroke, patients are then given medication that prevents blood platelets from clumping together and forming new clots. The combination of two such drugs is already being used successfully in cases of mild stroke that did not require acute treatment beforehand. However, there has not yet been sufficient research into whether this combined therapy is effective and safe after successfully reopening a blood vessel, whether this is done using a catheter or dissolving the clot through medication.

This is where the POTENTIAL (POst-Therapy ENhanced Thrombocyte Inhibition At Low NIHSS score) study comes in. “Our objective is to determine whether patients who have suffered a mild stroke benefit from 21 days of enhanced platelet inhibition, particularly after successful acute care,” explains Prof. Timo Siepmann. “To do this, we need to ascertain whether intensive therapy significantly reduces the risk of recurrent strokes without disproportionately increasing the risk of bleeding,” explains Prof. Hagen Huttner, Director of the Department of Neurology.

Approximately 2,100 patients are participating in the randomized study, which will be conducted nationwide. After ruling out cerebral hemorrhage, patients are randomly assigned to two groups: The treatment group receives intensive therapy (ASA plus clopidogrel) for three weeks, while the control group receives standard therapy with ASA alone. To measure the success of the treatment, the study relies on MRI imaging and clinical assessment. The project will commence in February 2026.  

“The coordination of this large-scale study underscores the pioneering role of Dresden's university medicine in stroke research,” emphasizes Prof. Esther Troost, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at TU Dresden. Prof. Uwe Platzbecker, Medical Director of the University Hospital, adds, “The results of POTENTIAL could have a significant impact on national and international guidelines for stroke treatment and bring about lasting improvements in patient care.”

Additional information to project announcement:
Intensified antiplatelet therapy in patients with low post-intervention NIHSS score - BMFTR Health Research 

Research contact:

Project manager: 
Prof. Timo Siepmann
Email: 

Deputy project manager:
Dr. Annahita Sedghi, MSc
Email: 

Study coordination:
Dr. Xina Grählert
Email: xina.grä 

Media contact:

Anne-Stephanie Vetter
Public Relations Office 
Carl Gustav Carus Faculty of Medicine of TUD Dresden University of Technology
Tel.: +49 351 458 17903
Email: