Aims: Patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACSs) who are managed without coronary revascularization represent a mixed and understudied population that seems to receive suboptimal pharmacological treatment.
Methods and results: We assessed patterns of antithrombotic therapies employed during the hospitalization and in-hospital clinical events of medically managed patients with ACS enrolled in the prospective, multicentre, nationwide EYESHOT (EmploYEd antithrombotic therapies in patients with acute coronary Syndromes HOspitalized in iTalian cardiac care units) registry. Among the 2585 consecutive ACS patients enrolled in EYESHOT, 783 (30.3%) did not receive any revascularization during hospital admission. Of these, 478 (61.0%) underwent coronary angiography (CA), whereas 305 (39.0%) did not. The median GRACE and CRUSADE risk scores were significantly higher among patients who did not undergo CA compared with those who did (180 vs. 145, P < 0.0001 and 50 vs. 33, P < 0.0001, respectively). Antithrombotic therapies employed during hospitalization significantly differ between patients who received CA and those who did not with unfractioned heparin and novel P2Y12 inhibitors more frequently used in the first group, and low-molecular-weight heparins and clopidogrel in the latter group. During the index hospitalization, patients who did not receive CA presented a higher incidence of ischaemic cerebrovascular events and of mortality compared with those who underwent CA (1.6 vs. 0.2%, P = 0.04 and 7.9 vs. 2.7%, P = 0.0009, respectively).
Conclusion: Almost one-third of ACS patients are managed without revascularization during the index hospitalization. In this population, a lower use of recommended antiplatelet therapy and worse clinical outcome were observed in those who did not undergo CA when compared with those who did.
Clinical trial registration: Unique identifier: NCT02015624, http://www.clinicaltrials.gov.
Keywords: Acute coronary syndromes; Anticoagulant; Antithrombotic therapy; Conservative strategy; Prasugrel; Ticagrelor.
Published on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology. All rights reserved. © The Author 2015. For permissions please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.