title: Comparison between five-year mortality of patients with and without red blood cell transfusion after percutaneous coronary intervention for ST-elevation acute myocardial infarction.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Red blood cell (RBC) transfusion can be lifesaving. However, in many clinical cases, including acute coronary syndromes, percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI), cardiac surgery, and acute critical care, detrimental effects (excess death and myocardial infarction [MI], and also lung infections) have been observed in patients after a RBC transfusion.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the long-term impact on the prognosis of patients who received a RBC transfusion after PCI for the treatment of ST-segment elevation MI (STEMI).
  
  
  METHODS
  Between 1999 and 2004, 2,415 consecutive patients, with an STEMI treated with PCI, were included in the analysis. The patients were divided into two groups: 82 patients with a RBC transfusion (3.5%) and 2,333 without a RBC transfusion (96.5%).
  
  
  RESULTS
  The in-hospital mortality rate was 15.8% and 4.2% (p < 0.0001) and the five-year mortality rate was 42.7% and 19% (p < 0.0001) for patients who received and who did not receive a RBC transfusion, respectively. Moreover, multivariate analysis revealed that, after correction for baseline differences, RBC transfusion was an independent predictor of five-year mortality in patients treated with PCI (HR 1.45; 95% CI 1.0-2.1; p = 0.04).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Red blood cell transfusion is associated with higher five-year mortality in STEMI patients treated with PCI.
authors.affiliation: Silesian Centre for Heart Diseases. mateusztajstra@wp.pl.
authors.forename: Mateusz
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tajstra
authors.forename: Mariusz
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gąsior
authors.forename: Marek
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gierlotka
authors.forename: Damian
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pres
authors.forename: Michał
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hawranek
authors.forename: Wiktor
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Kuliczkowski
authors.forename: Janusz
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Szkodziński
authors.forename: Lech
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Poloński
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D015906:Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary; D017707:Erythrocyte Transfusion; D005260:Female; D017052:Hospital Mortality; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000401:mortality* / Q000628:therapy*; D062645:Percutaneous Coronary Intervention / Q000401:mortality; D011379:Prognosis; D015996:Survival Rate