A major new cardiovascular study could make an important contribution to the management of patients following an acute myocardial infarction
Clinical research organisation Chiltern International has completed work in a major new cardiovascular study that could make an important contribution to the management of patients following an AMI (acute myocardial infarction).
Despite greater public awareness and improved clinical care, AMI remains one of the most commonly seen medical emergencies and a leading cause of death and disability.
Estimates suggest that every year around six million people worldwide suffer an AMI - where a coronary artery supplying blood to the heart is obstructed - and that around a quarter of them die as a result.
Although a variety of techniques and drug treatments can be used to improve blood flow to the heart muscle after an AMI (a process known as reperfusion therapy), until now it has been difficult to determine the best way to manage the disease.
As a result, there has been a growing need for comprehensive international studies to compare management practices and their clinical outcomes.
The Gracia I study (Grupo de Analisis de la Cardiopatia Isquemica Aguda, or Acute Ischaemic Heart Disease Group Study) was carried out in Europe recently involving 500 patients with AMI from 23 Spanish and Portuguese centres.
Chiltern International was involved in the operational running of the study, helping centres recruit patients and then monitoring the trial to ensure that it was carried out to the required international standards.
The study revealed that a combined therapy of stenting (where a small expandable wire mesh tube is inserted into the diseased artery to hold it open) within 24 hours of thrombolysis (drug treatment to break up blood clots) resulted in both shorter hospital stays and a lower risk of adverse events for AMI patients.
"The findings of this study represent a major achievement in the management of these patients," commented Lewis Cameron, general manager of Chiltern Spain.
"Our office was directly involved and it is very satisfying that we have played such a major role in an important study such as this.
The new treatment strategy which worked so well in the trial could well become the standard way of dealing with this particular cardiovascular problem, and it could change the approach for the treatment of thousands of patients every year." This study will be followed by another trial carried out in Spain and Portugal by Chiltern, called Gracia II, which will compare two strategies in the management of AMI.
The results should add to those of the Gracia I trial, and should lead to further improvements in the management of these patients.
