NSTEMI: Elderly patients 'benefit from invasive treatment'

Invasive treatment gives patients 80 years and older with non-ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) a five-year survival advantage along with fewer admissions for heart failure, a UK study suggests.

Researchers examined data on 1500 patients 80 years and older who had troponin measurements and were diagnosed with NSTEMI from 2010-17.

Patients in the study had a median age of 86 years, and 56% received non-invasive management for NSTEMI. During a median follow-up of three years, 41% died.

The adjusted cumulative five-year mortality was 36% with invasive management and 55% with non-invasive management, showing a 32% reduction in mortality with invasive management, the authors reported in The Lancet.

"Although invasive treatment is generally safe, risk of complications, including death, are higher in older patients, which may deter doctors from performing such procedures on them," said