Early eptifibatide improves TIMI 3 patency before primary percutaneous coronary intervention for acute ST elevation myocardial infarction: results of the randomized integrilin in acute myocardial infarction (INTAMI) pilot trial.
OBJECTIVE
Adjunctive therapy with glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors has been shown to reduce ischaemic complications and improve clinical outcome in patients with primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for acute ST elevation myocardial infarction. Little is known about the use of eptifibatide in this setting.


RESULTS
One hundred and two patients with ST elevation myocardial infarction <12 h scheduled for primary percutaneous intervention were randomly assigned to early eptifibatide given in the emergency room (early) or optional eptifibatide at the time of PCI (late or no). Primary endpoint was the patency of the infarct vessel before PCI. Patients in the early group received their first eptifibatide bolus, a mean of 45 min before angiography. TIMI 3 patency before PCI was observed in 34% in the early group and 10% in late or no group (P=0.01). The incidence of complete ST resolution 1 h after PCI was 61% in early group and 66% in the late or no group, respectively (P=n.s.). There were no significant differences in the rates of TIMI 3 flow after PCI, death, reinfarction, stroke, and major bleeding complications until day 30.


CONCLUSIONS
In this pilot trial, double bolus eptifibatide given in the emergency room improved TIMI 3 grade flow of the infarct-related coronary artery before PCI. These results should be confirmed in a larger trial and whether this advantage translates into an improvement in clinical outcome should be tested in a trial with primary clinical endpoints.
Zeymer
Uwe
U
Herzzentrum Ludwigshafen, Bremserstrasse 79, D-67063 Ludwigshafen, Germany. uwe.zeymer@t-online.de
Zahn
Ralf
R
Schiele
Rudolf
R
Jansen
Wolfgang
W
Girth
Ernst
E
Gitt
Anselm
A
Seidl
Karlheinz
K
Schröder
Rolf
R
Schneider
Steffen
S
Senges
Jochen
J
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015906:Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary / Q000379:methods*; D017023:Coronary Angiography; D004638:Emergency Treatment / Q000379:methods; D000077542:Eptifibatide; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000628:therapy*; D010455:Peptides / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D010865:Pilot Projects; D010975:Platelet Aggregation Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D014654:Vascular Patency
D010455:Peptides; D010975:Platelet Aggregation Inhibitors; D000077542:Eptifibatide