Abstract
OBJECTIVE:
To describe the use of adjunctive therapies in patients with acute myocardial infarction receiving thrombolytic agents.
DESIGN:
Data were collected prospectively by the study-site investigator or the emergency department physician caring for the patient. Study participation did not influence thrombolytic regimen selection or the adjunctive therapies ordered.
SETTING:
Thirteen Virginia hospitals representing a cross-section of hospitals in the state. Eleven are urban medical centers; four have graduate medical education programs.
PARTICIPANTS:
Patients were included in the study if the decision to administer thrombolytic therapy was made in the emergency department.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES:
Concomitant medications administered during the first six hours after initiation of thrombolytic therapy.
RESULTS:
Two hundred ten patients (aged 57 ± 14.1 y) were evaluated. Ninety-five percent of these patients were treated with tissue plasminogen activator, 3 percent received anisoylated plasminogen streptokinase activator complex, and 2 percent received streptokinase. Ninety-one percent of the patients also received heparin, the most commonly used adjunctive medication; 77 percent concomitantly received lidocaine; 62 percent received aspirin; and only 19 percent received a beta-blocker.
CONCLUSIONS:
Our data provide a reference point for future studies to determine factors that influence the selection of adjunctive agents for treating patients with acute myocardial infarction receiving thrombolytics.
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