Efficacy and safety of bivalirudin application during primary percutaneous coronary intervention in older patients with acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction

OBJECTIVE: ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) is the most serious type of acute coronary syndrome. This study aimed to investigate the efficacy and safety of bivalirudin application during primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) in older patients with acute STEMI. METHODS: A total of 672 older patients with STEMI (>75 years) who underwent PPCI were studied. The primary endpoints were 30-day net adverse clinical events (NACEs) post-emergency percutaneous coronary intervention, including major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events (MACCEs) and Bleeding Academic Research Consortium grades 2 to 5 (BARC 2–5) bleeding events. RESULTS: The incidence of NACEs and BARC 2–5 bleeding events in the bivalirudin group was significantly lower than that in the unfractionated heparin group. Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that bivalirudin significantly reduced 30-day NACEs (odds ratio: 0.700, 95% confidence interval: 0.492–0.995) and BARC 2–5 bleeding events (odds ratio: 0.561, 95% confidence interval: 0.343–0.918). At 1-year follow-up, these results were similar. CONCLUSIONS: Bivalirudin can be safely and effectively used during PPCI in older patients with STEMI. Bivalirudin reduces the risks of NACEs and bleeding within 30 days after PPCI, without increasing the risks of MACCEs and stent thrombosis compared with heparin.