If Possible, STEMI Patients Should Go Straight to a Cath Lab

Within a system designed to reduce time to reperfusion, mortality was lower in patients transported directly to a PCI-capable center than in those transferred from a non–PCI-capable center.

In the city of Ottawa, emergency medical system providers trained in electrocardiogram interpretation can triage patients with ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) directly to a center with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) capability. In a registry study, investigators compared outcomes in 822 patients transported directly to a PCI-capable hospital with those in 567 patients transported initially to a non–PCI-capable hospital, then transferred for primary PCI.

The median door-to-balloon time was significantly shorter in patients transported directly for PCI (66 minutes) than in those transferred for PCI (117 minutes). At 180 days, all-cause mortality was lower in directly transported patients than in those first taken t…

Reviewing Author

Howard C. Herrmann, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardAffluent Medical; Artedrone; Caranx; Johnson & Johnson; Medtronic; Prolifagen; Wells Fargo

EquityMicrointerventional Devices, Inc.

RoyaltiesUniversity of Pennsylvania

Grant/Research SupportAbbott Vascular; Edwards Lifesciences; Johnson & Johnson; Medtronic

Editorial BoardsCatheterization and Cardiovascular Interventions; Journal of the American College of Cardiology; Circulation: Cardiovascular Interventions; JACC Cardiovascular Interventions; JACC Case Reports; JSCAI