Study: Delayed angioplasties not beneficial

Using angioplasty to unclog arteries more than 24 hours after a patient’s heart attack does no good and might increase the chances of another attack, researchers said Tuesday.

The findings contradict a long-held belief that opening vessels to restore blood flow is always beneficial – and could spare thousands of patients from undergoing the costly and potentially risky procedure.

The report “is a sobering reminder that sometimes our preconceived notions turn out not to be accurate,” said Dr. Prediman K. Shah, director of cardiology at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, who was not involved in the research.

Dr. L. David Hillis of the University of Texas Southwestern in Dallas said the study should end delayed angioplasties in stable heart-attack patients. The surgery typically costs between $10,000 and $15,000, he said.

“There should be a substantial savings in patient discomfort and also monetarily,” said Hillis, who co-wrote an editorial on the study, both of which were posted on the Web site of the New England Journal of Medicine.

The study was presented Tuesday at the annual meeting of the American Heart Association in Chicago.

The study of more than 2,000 patients in 27 countries focused on the outcomes of angioplasties performed more than 24 hours and up to 28 days after patients developed symptoms of a heart attack.

If performed within 12 hours after a heart attack, the procedure could preserve heart muscle and reduce deaths, researchers said. That’s why people who might be experiencing a heart attack are urged to get immediate help.

Previous research on angioplasties performed outside the 12-hour window produced conflicting results.

The latest study divided 2,166 patients into two groups: One received standard medications to prevent blood clots and maintain heart rhythm; the second got the same drugs in addition to an angioplasty.

After four years, the groups had comparable incidences of death, serious heart failure or recurrent heart attack.

“There was absolutely no benefit,” said Dr. Judith Hochman, director of cardiovascular research at New York University and lead author of the report.

There were worrisome indications that risks associated with angioplasty might increase over time. At the end of five years, 21.2 percent of patients receiving angioplasty had another attack compared with 16.5 percent of the group receiving only heart medications. Researchers said the difference was not statistically significant.