Barriers to Early Discharge after Elective Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (BED PCI): A Single-Center Study.

OBJECTIVE: To identify patient characteristics and procedural factors that may play a role in hindering same-day discharge (SDD) practices. BACKGROUND: Multiple studies have shown the safety and cost effectiveness of SDD following elective percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), but factors that hinder SDD practices have not been thoroughly studied. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A retrospective comparative analysis of elective PCI patients who had an overnight stay (OS) (n=345) vs. SDD patients (n=222) was conducted to identify significant differences between the two groups in baseline patient characteristics, procedural, and postprocedural factors. RESULTS: Comparing OS to SDD patients, OS patients had a lower prevalence of radial access (20.29% vs. 39.64%, P<0.0001); a higher incidence of suboptimal angiographic results (14.49% vs. 1.80%, P=0.0027); CRCL values lower than 60mL/min (26.38% vs. 15.32%, P=0.0019); and greater femoral vascular site hemostasis with manual compression (69.09% vs. 36.57%, P=0.0027). OS patients received larger sheath sizes (P=0.0209), more bivalirudin (45.80% vs. 36.70%) and glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors (5.51% vs. 2.25%), but less heparin (51.30% vs. 53.21%). Chest pain (8.12% vs. 0.92%, P=0.0042) and vascular access site concerns (20.58% vs. 0%, P=0.0027) were more common among OS patients. CONCLUSIONS: Pre-, peri-, and post-procedural factors play a role in SDD eligibility. Understanding factors that limit as well as those that facilitate SDD may enable institutions to establish or enhance a SDD program.

Safety of anticoagulation with uninterrupted warfarin vs. interrupted dabigatran in patients requiring an implantable cardiac device.

BACKGROUND: The optimal strategy of peri-procedural anticoagulation in patients undergoing permanent cardiac device implantation is controversial. Our objective was to compare the major bleeding and thromboembolic complications in patients managed with uninterrupted warfarin (UW) vs. interrupted dabigatran (ID) during permanent pacemaker (PPM) or implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICD) implantation. METHODS: A retrospective cohort study of all eligible patients from July 2011 through January 2012 was performed. UW was defined as patients who had maintained a therapeutic international normalized ratio (INR) on the day of the procedure. ID was defined as stopping dabigatran ≥12 hours prior to the procedure and then resuming after implantation. Major bleeding events included hemothorax, hemopericardium, intracranial hemorrhage, gastrointestinal bleed, epistaxis, or pocket hematoma requiring surgical intervention. Thromboembolic complications included stroke, transient ischemic attack, deep venous thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, or arterial embolism. RESULTS: Of the 133 patients (73.4±11.0 years; 91 males) in the study, 86 received UW and 47 received ID. One (1.2%) patient in the UW group sustained hemopericardium perioperatively and died. In comparison, the ID patients had no complications. As compared to the ID group, the UW group had a higher median CHADS2 score (2 vs. 3, P=0.04) and incidence of Grade 1 pocket hematoma (0% vs. 7%, P=0.09). Neither group developed any thromboembolic complications. CONCLUSIONS: Major bleeding rates were similar among UW and ID groups. Perioperative ID appears to be a safe anticoagulation strategy for patients undergoing PPM or ICD implantation.

Impact of an emergency department-initiated clinical protocol for the evaluation and treatment of atrial fibrillation.

OBJECTIVE: Published data supporting the best practice for patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) presenting to the emergency department (ED) are limited. Our objective was to evaluate the impact of an AF clinical protocol initiated in the ED with early follow-up in a specialty AF outpatient clinic. METHODS: This was a single-center prospective study of all consented patients with AF who were discharged from the ED through the AF clinical pathway and were then seen in the AF clinic. The primary endpoint was the rate of 90-day hospitalization/ED visits. Secondary endpoints included adherence to established AF anticoagulation guidelines, rate of thromboembolic events, quality of life, and patient satisfaction. RESULTS: One hundred consecutive patients were enrolled in the study. Within 90 days, 15 had ED visits and 4 were hospitalized, whereas none developed thromboembolic complications. There were significant increases in the Atrial Fibrillation Effect on QualiTy of life survey quality of life (67.3 ± 24.8 vs. 89.2 ± 15.7; P < 0.001) and patient satisfaction (66.4 ± 25.3 vs. 77.9 ± 22.8; P < 0.001) scores from baseline to 90 days. Of the 29 patients with CHADS2 score ≥2, 20 (69%) were discharged from the AF clinic with oral anticoagulation. CONCLUSIONS: We describe a novel approach to the care of patients with AF presenting to the ED. Usage of the ED-initiated AF clinical pathway with early follow-up in a protocol-driven AF clinic was associated with low readmission rates, no thromboembolic complications at 90 days, improved quality of life, and high patient satisfaction.

Economic and operational implications of a standardized approach to hemodynamic support therapy using percutaneous cardiac assist devices.

OBJECTIVE: Impella 2.5 has been shown to reduce major adverse events for patients undergoing elective high-risk percutaneous coronary intervention. We performed a single-center retrospective study to compare the costs and resource use of Impella 2.5 and intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) support. METHODS: All high-risk patients who received Impella 2.5 (n = 35) and IABP (n = 295) support from December 2008 to July 2011 were included. Propensity score matching identified a balanced 1:1 matched cohort (35 Impella vs 35 IABP) based on indications for implantation, preimplantation hemodynamics, and age. Diagnostic, procedural, financial, and resource use data were collected. RESULTS: As compared with IABP, Impella offered a more predictable course of treatment/resource consumption and was not associated with any extreme cost outliers (17.1% vs 0.0%, respectively; P = 0.025). The mean admission and 90-day episode of care total costs for Impella were 5.5% ($67,681 vs $71,608, P = 0.79) and 4.2% ($70,680 vs $73,476, P = 0.85) lesser than that for IABP, respectively. Although not statistically significant, Impella patients had a trend toward lower rehospitalization rates (11.4% vs 20%), lesser mean index length of hospital stay (11.2 vs 13.7), and 90-day (11.7 vs 14.2) episode of care length of hospital stay. CONCLUSIONS: Impella support was associated with consistent course of treatment/resource consumption with significantly fewer 90-day extreme cost outliers than was IABP. The lower index and 90-day follow-up cost trends observed for Impella were driven by shorter length of hospital stay and fewer rehospitalizations. As providers strive to improve quality of care by reducing variability, these findings have implications for the development of hemodynamic support algorithms.

Assessment of clinical outcomes related to early discharge after elective percutaneous coronary intervention: COED PCI.

OBJECTIVE: To assess clinical outcomes of same-day discharge (SDD) patients after elective percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). BACKGROUND: An overnight stay after PCI has been the standard approach in the majority of institutions. Data supporting SDD while maintaining patient safety, based on contemporary United States practice, have not been well established. METHODS: Using institutional pre-, peri-, and post-procedural guidelines, short-term clinical outcomes of 200 consecutive patients discharged on the same day after elective PCI were prospectively studied. Major adverse cardiac events (MACE), access site and vascular complications, readmissions, and emergency room (ER) visits were assessed within 24 hrs and at 7-day post-SDD. MACE included cerebral vascular accidents, death, myocardial infarction, target vessel revascularization, pulmonary embolism, and emergent coronary artery bypass grafting. RESULTS: The mean age of the population was 63.2 years; 75% were males. Of 200 patients, 75.5% were accessed femorally and 24.5% had radial access. Intra-procedural anticoagulation included bivalirudin alone (47%), bivalirudin with glycoprotein (GP) IIb/IIIa inhibitors (3.5%), heparin alone (37%), and heparin with GP IIb/IIIa inhibitors (12.5%). No major bleeding or MACE was reported within 24 hrs or at 7 days. Within 7 days, 8 (4%) patients experienced minor bleeding, 4 (2%) were readmitted, and 3 (1.5%) had ER visits only. Pseudoaneurysm occurred in 1 (0.5%) patient. CONCLUSIONS: Our institution-specific guidelines identify low-risk PCI patients who can be safely considered candidates for SDD with virtually no short-term adverse consequences.