In-hospital clinical outcomes of elderly patients (≥60 years) undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention.

Elderly patients are at high risk of mortality when they present with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). However, the clinical outcomes of this sub-group undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) have not been well established, despite recent advances in both devices and techniques. In the present retrospective cohort study from a Chinese single center, we assessed the clinical outcomes and predictors of mortality in elderly patients (≥60 years) underwent with PPCI. The primary endpoints were immediate angiographic success and in-hospital procedural success. The secondary endpoints were all-cause death in hospital. Between January 2011 and December 2013, a total of 184 consecutive patients with acute STEMI underwent PPCI were enrolled. 116 (63.04%) patients were in the elderly group. Despite the difference in lesion complexity between groups, the immediate angiographic success rate was similar (93.97% in the elderly group, and 94.12% in the non-elderly group, P=0.966). The procedural success rate were not significantly different between the two groups (90.52% in the elderly group, and 94.12% in the non-elderly group, P=0.389). However, in-hospital mortality was statistically higher in elderly group than in the non-elderly group (8.62% Vs 1.47%, P=0.048). The major causes of death were cardiac shock and malignant arrhythmias (ventricular tachycardia and fibrillation). Our results indicate that PPCI in the elderly is feasible and has a high likelihood of immediate angiographic and procedural success.