Excess mortality and guideline-indicated care following non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction

Adherence to guideline-indicated care for the treatment of non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) is associated with improved outcomes. We investigated the extent and consequences of non-adherence to guideline-indicated care across a national health system.

A cohort study (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02436187) was conducted using data from the Myocardial Ischaemia National Audit Project (n = 389,057 NSTEMI, n = 247 hospitals, England and Wales, 2003–2013). Accelerated failure time models were used to quantify the impact of non-adherence on survival according to dates of guideline publication.

Over a period of 1,079,044 person-years (median 2.2 years of follow-up), 113,586 (29.2%) NSTEMI patients died. Of those eligible to receive care, 337,881 (86.9%) did not receive one or more guideline-indicated intervention; the most frequently missed were dietary advice (n = 254,869, 68.1%), smoking cessation advice (n = 245,357, 87.9%), P2Y12 inhibitors (n = 192,906, 66.3%) and coronary angiography (n = 161,853, 43.4%). Missed interventions with the strongest impact on reduced survival were coronary angiography (time ratio: 0.18, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.17–0.18), cardiac rehabilitation (time ratio: 0.49, 95% CI: 0.48–0.50), smoking cessation advice (time ratio: 0.53, 95% CI: 0.51–0.57) and statins (time ratio: 0.56, 95% CI: 0.55–0.58). If all eligible patients in the study had received optimal care at the time of guideline publication, then 32,765 (28.9%) deaths (95% CI: 30,531–33,509) may have been prevented.

The majority of patients hospitalised with NSTEMI missed at least one guideline-indicated intervention for which they were eligible. This was significantly associated with excess mortality. Greater attention to the provision of guideline-indicated care for the management of NSTEMI will reduce premature cardiovascular deaths.