Copyright © 1995 by the European Society of Cardiology.
© 1995 The European Scociety of Cardiology
Prevention and management of thrombotic complications during coronary interventions
Combination therapy with antithrombins, antiplatelets, and/or thrombolytics: risks and benefits
Medizinische Klinik II, Städtische Kliniken Kassel Germany
Correspondence: Dr Karl-Ludwig Neuhaus, Medizinische Klinik II, Städtische Kliniken Kassel, Mönchebergstraβe 41-43, D-34125 Kassel, Germany
Acute occlusions after percutaneous transluminal coronary intervention occur in about 5% of cases. The incidence of these serious adverse events may be reduced by the identification of risk factor, appropriate indication for the intervention, and by medical therapy with antiplatelets and antithrombins. The medical management of complications during percutaneous transluminal interventions also may include thrombolytics.
Aspirin has been shown to significantly reduce the incidence of procedure-related coronary occlusion and ischaemic events. Available data suggest pre-treatment with 250–500 mg followed by 100–300 mg aspirin after the intervention. Ticlopidine seems to be equally effective; however, because of its side effects it should be used only in cases of a contraindication to aspirin.
The second indispensable therapeutic concept in the prevention of acute thrombotic events during PTCA is thrombin inhibition. The level of anticoagulation achieved by heparin seems to be critically important. Therefore the recommendation for heparin dosing is a bolus of 10 000 U followed by an intravenous infusion over 24 h of either 1000 U.h–1 or an infusion adjusted to keep the aPTT above 3 times control, but lower doses of shorter duration may be equally effective in uncompli cated cases. Prolonged pre-treatment with heparin may be useful if the pre-intervention angiogram is suggestive of intracoronary thrombus.
Thrombolysis as an adjunct to PTCA did not reduce the rate of periprocedural coronary occlusions, but pre-treatment with thrombolysis may be useful in patients with recanalization of occluded vein grafts or in patients with large amounts of thrombotic material.
In acute coronary occlusion, thrombolysis has rarely been used as a sole rescue therapy and results have not been encouraging, although a thrombotic process often is involved. Thrombolysis as an adjunct to rescue angioplasty showed no better clinical outcome than prolonged balloon inflation or stenting. Because of serious bleeding complications, thrombolysis should only be considered as a treatment option if thrombosis is unequivocally the major cause of the acute occlusion.
Key Words: Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) • antiplatelets • antithrombins • thrombolytics • complications • acute coronary artery occlusion