RT Journal
A1 Secemsky EA, Lange D, Ho JE, et al
T1 IMprovement in revascularization time after creation of a coronary catheterization laboratory at a public hospital
JF Archives of Internal Medicine
JO Archives of Internal Medicine
YR 2012
FD January 23
VO 172
IS 2
SP 193
OP 194
DO 10.1001/archinternmed.2011.564
UL http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/archinternmed.2011.564
AB 
Time to revascularization is a major predictor of outcomes during the treatment of ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI).1 As such, a door-to-balloon (DTB) time of less than 90 minutes is an important quality standard. Among nearly 5000 acute care hospitals in the United States, fewer than 25% have percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) facilities, resulting in a significant proportion of patients with STEMI being transferred for PCI.2 Despite targeted efforts nationally, these institutions rarely achieve revascularization standards.3 In addition, public hospitals charged with serving as regional default health care facilities for the uninsured may disproportionately struggle to meet guidelines when transferring for PCI. Revascularization data for these institutions, however, are lacking from the current literature.3- 6 In the present study, we determined DTB times for patients with STEMI presenting to a public hospital previously reliant on transferring for PCI and examined whether creation of a 24-hour cardiac catheterization laboratory (CCL) improved revascularization times.