A case for palliative percutaneous coronary intervention

To the editor On reading the review on coronary revascularisation in the elderly by Cockburn et al,1 I must agree that more trials are needed to focus on the benefit of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in elderly populations. When assessing these patients, clinicians should consider the impact of symptom relief versus procedural risk. If a patient is experiencing recurrent and debilitating chest pain requiring frequent hospital admission, then the risks of PCI, despite multiple comorbidities, could easily be rationalised when the benefit to the patient is clear. In such patients this ‘palliative PCI’ approach, aiming to improve quality of life but not necessarily prolong it, should be at the forefront of the clinicians mind. Each patient should be assessed with consideration of the benefits to the individual and with a clear understanding of the values of the patient. An interesting additional consideration not mentioned in the...
Source: Heart - Category: Cardiology Authors: Tags: PostScript Source Type: research