Background: The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of facilitated percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in comparing young and elderly patients with acute myocardial infarction.
Methods and results: The present study enrolled 168 initial myocardial infarction patients within 12 h of the symptom onset between 40 and 80 years of age who were indicated on the fibrinolysis and subsequent transluminal (FAST-3) trial. The patients were divided into 4 groups according to their age, peak creatine kinase (CK), peak CK-MB and peak troponin T (Tn-T) levels, and cardiac function were compared between the 4 groups. There were no differences between the 4 groups in terms of the time from arrival at the emergency room (ER) to the achievement of TIMI-3 patency. There were also no significant differences between the 4 groups in terms of the peak CK, peak CK-MB or peak Tn-T levels. Furthermore, there were no significant differences between the 4 groups in terms of the mortality rate or the incidence of hemorrhagic complications at 30 days.
Conclusions: Facilitated PCI is considered to have an important potential role in the treatment of myocardial infarction in Japan, in which the age of the population is steadily increasing.