Introduction:
Approximately 8-40% of ST-elevation Myocardial Infarction (STEMI) present later than 12 hours after symptom onset. Current ACC/AHA guidelines recommend primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for STEMI after 12 hours of symptom onset only in the setting of cardiogenic shock or severe acute heart failure, (Class Ia, LOE B) or persistent ischemic symptoms (Class IIa, LOE B). There are limited data comparing long-term outcomes among patients with a late STEMI presentation managed with PCI versus medical therapy (MT).
Objective:
To compare long-term outcomes among patients treated with PCI versus MT who have late presentation of STEMI
Methods:
We followed Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) guidelines to extract data from PubMed/Medline, Cochrane, Embase, and Clinicaltrials.gov databases by using the search terms “late” or “delayed” or “>12 hours” presentation with STEMI from 01/2012 through 12/2022. Included studies reported at least one of the following outcomes: all-cause mortality, reinfarction, heart failure, major adverse cardiac events (MACE), and stroke. Studies reporting delays in PCI due to COVID-19 positive status or COVID-19 enforced protocols were excluded to prevent the impact of pragmatic barriers on treatment. Relative risk (RR) was calculated using random effects model if heterogeneity was >50%, otherwise, fixed effects model was used
Results:
Seven studies (n=11,576, delayed PCI n=6,248, and medical therapy n=5,319) were included in our analysis. The median follow-up was 12 months (1-60 months). Overall, among patients with STEMI and PCI >12 hour after presentation had lower incidence of MACE (27% vs. 30%, RR 0.85, 95% CI 0.76-0.69, I2=30%, p=0.007) compared to MT alone, which was driven by a significantly reduced all-cause mortality with PCI (4.4% vs. 17%, RR 0.38, 95% CI 0.17-0.85, I2=95%, p=0.01). No significant differences were observed in the incidence of recurrent MI and heart failure hospitalizations.
Conclusion:
Our study suggests favorable outcomes of PCI in STEMI with presentation >12 hours compared with medical therapy. Further prospective studies are needed to validate our findings.
