Early hospital discharge in the myocardial reperfusion era.
The prognosis of patients with acute myocardial infarction has improved dramatically over the past several decades. New treatment strategies, however, have incrementally increased the expense of treating these patients. Early hospital discharge is one potential way of offsetting some of this expense. Cardiac catheterization can greatly facilitate patient selection for early discharge by defining patients with low-risk anatomy who do not require additional diagnostic testing or therapy, by documenting infarct artery patency, an important predictor of a favorable prognosis, and by diagnosing patients who can expeditiously be revascularized by coronary angioplasty.
Bates
E R
ER
Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
Topol
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EJ
D006328:Cardiac Catheterization; D017023:Coronary Angiography; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000191:economics; D008991:Monitoring, Physiologic; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D015425:Myocardial Reperfusion; D012306:Risk; D014481:United States