Background: It has been suggested that patients undergoing acute intervention for coronary syndromes may not receive adequate secondary prevention.
Objective: To analyse the impact of availability and use of coronary interventions on the prescription of secondary prevention after acute coronary syndromes.
Design: Analysis of a prospective multicentre register of patients admitted to hospital for acute coronary syndromes.
Setting: A 1999 pan-European survey in 390 hospitals.
Patients: 3092 patients admitted to hospital with acute coronary syndromes (including 777 for ST elevation myocardial infarction within 12 hours of onset).
Main outcome measures: Rates of prescription of aspirin and lipid lowering agents.
Results: Performance of coronary angiography and percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) during the hospital stay were independent predictors of prescription of aspirin at discharge (odds ratio (OR) 1.29 and 1.89, p = 0.053 and p < 0.0001, respectively). Lipid lowering agents were prescribed more often on discharge in patients admitted to hospitals with catheterisation laboratories than without (for infarction with ST elevation, 45% v 40% (NS); for other acute coronary syndromes, 46% v 36%; p < 0.05). Prescription rates were higher among patients undergoing coronary angiography or PCI than in those treated conservatively (for infarction with ST elevation, 49%, 53%, and 39%, p < 0.05; for other acute coronary syndromes, 50%, 54%, and 34%, p < 0.05). Logistic regression analysis showed that PCI was an independent predictor of prescription of lipid lowering agents at discharge (OR 1.48, p < 0.0002).
Conclusions: Contrary to expectations, invasive procedures for acute coronary syndromes are associated with higher rates of prescription of pharmacological secondary prevention.