Patient selection: adult admitted with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI)
Outcome: hospital readmission or death within 30 days
Factors associated with an increased risk for outcomes:
(1) age >= 80 years
(2) diabetes mellitus
(3) presentation with chest pain
(4) presentation with cardiac arrest
(5) 3-vessel disease at initial angiography
(6) onset of new heart failure in the hospital
Factors reducing the risk for outcomes:
(1) hypercholesterolemia
(2) patient transferred to current hospital from another emergency department
(3) clopidogrel given during catheterization procedure
(4) therapy at discharge with combination of aspirin, beta-blocker, and ACE or ARB inhibitor
where:
• Many of the patients in the study were receiving lipid-lowering agents.
