Which Therapy for Acute Heart Attacks? (The WEST Study)

Summary

In the setting of acute myocardial infarction (heart attacks), the principle objective of the WEST Study is to compare the impact on clinical outcomes of 3 different treatment strategies. The first is using medical (drug) therapy alone with standard care. The second strategy is identical medical (drug) therapy as the first group combined with early heart catheterization (within 24 hours) for angiography and if required, intervention. The third treatment strategy is direct admission (within 3 hrs) to the heart catheterization lab for angioplasty. WEST patients will be enrolled at first medical contact (using emergency medical services, e.g. ambulance) if possible or through Emergency Departments in participating health care facilities.

Timeline

Start

2003-07

Primary completion

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Completion

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Publications

• Background Armstrong PW; WEST Steering Committee. A comparison of pharmacologic therapy with/without timely coronary intervention vs. primary percutaneous intervention early after ST-elevation myocardial infarction: the WEST (Which Early ST-elevation myocardial infarction Therapy) study. Eur Heart J. 2006 Jul;27(13):1530-8. doi: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehl088. Epub 2006 Jun 6.
• Westerhout CM, Bonnefoy E, Welsh RC, Steg PG, Boutitie F, Armstrong PW. The influence of time from symptom onset and reperfusion strategy on 1-year survival in ST-elevation myocardial infarction: a pooled analysis of an early fibrinolytic strategy versus primary percutaneous coronary intervention from CAPTIM and WEST. Am Heart J. 2011 Feb;161(2):283-90. doi: 10.1016/j.ahj.2010.10.033.

Drugs

Indications