Introducción y objetivos: La epidemia de COVID-19 y la declaración del estado de alarma han propiciado una disminución en la actividad en la cardiología intervencionista. El objetivo de este estudio es cuantificar esta disminución, con especial interés en el funcionamiento del código infarto. Métodos: Se realizó una encuesta telemática a 81 centros de las 17 comunidades autónomas españolas con procedimientos de código infarto. Se recogió información sobre la actividad diagnóstica, el intervencionismo coronario, el intervencionismo estructural y el intervencionismo en el seno del infarto agudo de miocardio con elevación del segmento ST (IAMCEST) sobre cambios en la organización de las redes del infarto y sobre la afección por COVID-19 de las plantillas de cardiología intervencionista. Se compararon 2 periodos: uno entre el 24 de febrero y el 1 de marzo (antes del inicio de la pandemia en España) y el otro entre el 16 y el 22 de marzo (durante la pandemia). Resultados: Se obtuvo respuesta de 73 centros (90%) que evidenció una disminución significativa en el número de procedimientos diagnósticos (-56%), terapéuticos coronarios (-48%), terapéuticos estructurales (-81%) y en el seno del IAMCEST (-40%). Se indicó un leve incremento en el uso de trombolisis. Se diagnosticó infección por COVID-19 en 17 cardiólogos intervencionistas (5%). Conclusiones: Se observó una reducción importante de la actividad asistencial durante la epidemia de COVID-19 y una gran disminución en el número de pacientes tratados con IAMCEST, con el riesgo de incremento de morbimortalidad que esto supone. Las sociedades científicas y autoridades sanitarias deberían promover que los pacientes con síntomas compatibles con IAMCEST demanden asistencia al sistema sanitario para poder recibir el tratamiento de reperfusión de forma adecuada.
Introduction and objectives
The COVID-19 outbreak has had an unclear impact on the treatment and outcomes of patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). The aim of this study was to assess changes in STEMI management during the COVID-19 outbreak.
Methods
Using a multicenter, nationwide, retrospective, observational registry of consecutive patients who were managed in 75 specific STEMI care centers in Spain, we compared patient and procedural characteristics and in-hospital outcomes in 2 different cohorts with 30-day follow-up according to whether the patients had been treated before or after COVID-19.
Results
Suspected STEMI patients treated in STEMI networks decreased by 27.6% and patients with confirmed STEMI fell from 1305 to 1009 (22.7%). There were no differences in reperfusion strategy (> 94% treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention in both cohorts). Patients treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention during the COVID-19 outbreak had a longer ischemic time (233 [150-375] vs 200 [140-332] minutes,
P
< .001) but showed no differences in the time from first medical contact to reperfusion. In-hospital mortality was higher during COVID-19 (7.5% vs 5.1%; unadjusted OR, 1.50; 95%CI, 1.07-2.11;
P
< .001); this association remained after adjustment for confounders (risk-adjusted OR, 1.88; 95%CI, 1.12-3.14;
P
= .017). In the 2020 cohort, there was a 6.3% incidence of confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection during hospitalization.
Conclusions
The number of STEMI patients treated during the current COVID-19 outbreak fell vs the previous year and there was an increase in the median time from symptom onset to reperfusion and a significant 2-fold increase in the rate of in-hospital mortality. No changes in reperfusion strategy were detected, with primary percutaneous coronary intervention performed for the vast majority of patients. The co-existence of STEMI and SARS-CoV-2 infection was relatively infrequent.
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