[Reperfusion therapy in acute myocardial infarction: primary percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty or thrombolysis?].

Randomized controlled trials that compared primary percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty with thrombolysis have shown that primary angioplasty is more effective than intravenous thrombolysis in reducing mortality and morbidity in patients with acute myocardial infarction. Three large myocardial infarction registries - MITI, NRMI-2 and French registry - failed to show an advantage of primary angioplasty compared with thrombolysis. One of the latest trials mentioned in this paper restored the place of primary angioplasty as superior to thrombolysis in acute myocardial infarction. Data of patients treated with primary percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty in Clinic of Cardiology of Vilnius University are presented.