< Back to front page Text size – +

Heart attack patients getting faster treatment

E-mail | Print | Comments () Posted by Gideon Gil December 2, 2009 05:51 PM

Facebook
E-mail

By Liz Kowalczyk, Globe Staff

Heart attack patients who are rushed to the hospital are receiving life-saving treatment more quickly, the American College of Cardiology reported today.

In 2005, only about one-half of patients arriving at the hospital with a heart attack underwent angioplasty to unclog their arteries within the recommended time, which is 90 minutes. In 2008, following a national push by the college to get patients into treatment more quickly, 75 percent of patients received angioplasty within one and a half hours, according to a study published in this month's Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

The college's campaign sought to improve these times because other studies have shown that patients who are suffering from a heart attack and are treated within 90 minutes of entering the hospital have a higher rate of survival than those who are treated later.

The authors evaluated ''door to balloon'' time in 831 hospitals participating in the college's National Cardiovascular Data Registry from April 1, 2005, to March 31, 2008.

The federal Medicare program makes public information on how fast hospitals provide angioplasty to heart attack patients. Hospitals report this information voluntarily, but not all do. According to the most recent data on the government's Hospital Compare website, Massachusetts hospitals report that 88 percent of heart attack patients undergo angioplasty within 90 minutes, better than the national average of 77 percent.

Individual hospitals reported varied results: Brigham and Women's Hospital said 81 percent of patients were treated within the 90-minute window, while Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center said its rate is 95 percent.

Facebook
E-mail

« Back to front page

About white coat notes

White Coat Notes covers the latest from the health care industry, hospitals, doctors offices, labs, insurers, and the corridors of government. Chelsea Conaboy previously covered health care for The Philadelphia Inquirer. Write her at cconaboy@boston.com. Follow her on Twitter: @cconaboy.

Daily Dose | More Health&Wellness

health answers

Long-term health consequences to being born prematurely? It's estimated that each year nearly 500,000 babies in the United States are born prematurely, or before 37 weeks of pregnancy. Submit question | More answers