Journal of the American Heart Association
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Multicenter Study
Thrombolysis delivery by a regional telestroke network--experience from the U.K. National Health Service.
The majority of established telestroke services are based on "hub-and-spoke" models for providing acute clinical assessment and thrombolysis. We report results from the first year of the successful implementation of a locally based telemedicine network, without the need of 1 or more hub hospitals, across a largely rural landscape. ⋯ We demonstrate the safety and effectiveness of a horizontal networking approach for stroke telemedicine, which may be applicable to areas where traditional "hub-and-spoke" models may not be geographically feasible.
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Although similar to cancer patients regarding symptom burden and prognosis, patients with heart failure (HF) tend to receive palliative care far less frequently. We sought to explore factors perceived by cardiology, primary care, and palliative care providers to impede palliative care referral for HF patients. ⋯ Palliative care referral for HF patients may be suboptimal due to limited provider knowledge and misperceptions of palliative care as a service reserved for those near death. These factors represent potentially modifiable targets for provider education, which may help to improve palliative care referral for HF patients with unresolved disease-related burden.
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New-onset atrial fibrillation (AF) is reported to increase the risk of death in myocardial infarction (MI) patients. However, previous studies have reported conflicting results and no data exist to explain the underlying cause of higher death rates in these patients. ⋯ New-onset AF after first-time MI is associated with increased mortality, which is largely explained by more cardiovascular deaths. Focus on the prognostic impact of post-infarct AF is warranted.
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Observational Study
Delay from first medical contact to primary PCI and all-cause mortality: a nationwide study of patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction.
Early reperfusion in the setting of an ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) is of utmost importance. However, the effects of early versus late reperfusion in this patient group undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) have so far been inconsistent in previous studies. The purpose of this study was to evaluate in a nationwide cohort the effects of delay from first medical contact to PCI (first medical contact [FMC]-to-PCI) and secondarily delay from symptom-to-PCI on clinical outcomes. ⋯ Delays in FMC-to-PCI were strongly associated with increased mortality already at delays of more than 1 hour, possibly through an increase in severe heart failure. A goal of FMC-to-PCI of less than 1 hour might save patient lives.