Guidelines on laboratories' percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) volumes too low?
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
A new study confirms that cardiac catheterisation laboratories with higher volumes of percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) procedures have lower complication rates. However, Dr Stephen Kimmel and colleagues from University of Pennsylvania hospital report in JAMA (October 11th) that current guidelines of minimum volume to maintain competence may be too low. Data from 19,594 PTCA patients in 48 cardiac catheterisation centres in the US and Canada showed that increasing laboratory volume was associated with a significant reduction in mortality, emergency coronary artery bypass grafts and major complications.