Meta-analysis compares anticoagulant strategies in patients with acute myocardial infarction undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention

Commentary on: Bangalore S, Toklu B, Kotwal A, et al. Anticoagulant therapy during primary percutaneous coronary intervention for acute myocardial infarction: a meta-analysis of randomised trials in the era of stents and P2Y12 inhibitors. BMJ 2014;349:g6419 Context Optimal anticoagulant therapy in patients receiving primary intervention for acute myocardial infarction (MI) is widely debated. Prior studies have been heterogeneous in doses and concomitant treatments such that it has been unclear whether effects have been those of newer medication or a result of changes in these co-interventions. A meta-analytic approach can allow comparisons between multiple anticoagulant strategies and can help clarify heterogeneity and address power in pooled analyses. Methods The authors performed a study-level meta-analysis on 22 randomised controlled trials including patients with ST-elevation MI who were undergoing stent placement and were administered P2Y12 inhibitors (N=22 434 patients). The treatment strategies considered included: unfractionated heparin (UFH) alone, UFH...
Source: Evidence-Based Medicine - Category: Internal Medicine Authors: Tags: Clinical trials (epidemiology), Drugs: cardiovascular system, Stroke, Interventional cardiology, Ischaemic heart disease, Venous thromboembolism, Radiology, Clinical diagnostic tests Therapeutics/Prevention Source Type: research