Outcome of patients with acute myocardial infarction who are ineligible for primary angioplasty trials.

We determined acute outcome in 148 consecutive patients with ST segment elevation myocardial infarction undergoing angioplasty including 72 patients (48.7%) considered ineligible for primary angioplasty trials. Overall, in-hospital mortality for acute infarct angioplasty was 12%, with fivefold higher mortality in the trial-ineligible group (21% vs. 4%, P = 0.003). Thus, primary angioplasty trials continue to exclude nearly 50% of acute infarction patients and reported mortality rates of primary angioplasty trials are likely to be significantly lower than the unselected in-hospital mortality rates. Cathet. Cardiovasc. Intervent. 49:237-243, 2000. Copyright 2000 Wiley-Liss, Inc.