Heart Beat: Applying cardiac advances saves lives
Heart Beat
Applying cardiac advances saves lives
Organizations like the American College of Cardiology and American Heart Association spend a lot of time sifting through the ever-growing mountain of studies to come up with guidelines for treating cardiovascular disease. When doctors follow these guidelines (which isn't always the case), do their patients really benefit? Information from an international database called the Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events (GRACE) shows that it definitely makes a difference for heart attack victims.
GRACE includes information on more than 44,000 people who suffered acute coronary events between 1999 and 2006. (Acute coronary event is the catchall term for heart attack and unstable angina, which is essentially chest pain at rest.) During that time, results from large randomized trials clearly showed the value of immediate angioplasty to open blocked coronary arteries, as well as the benefits of early statin therapy and wider use of beta blockers, ACE inhibitors, and antiplatelet drugs such as aspirin and clopidogrel (Plavix).
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