Gender differences and in-hospital mortality in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary interventions.

BACKGROUND

Many observational and randomised studies have suggested that women are referred for invasive diagnostics and treatment of coronary artery disease (CAD) less frequently than men, and the effects of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) among women are worse than in men.

AIM

To compare direct results of PCI in men and women.

METHODS

The study was a retrospective assessment of case records of one thousand consecutive patients treated with PCI because of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) (344 patients), unstable angina (UA) (164 patients) and stable angina (SA) (492 patients). We examined the effects of demographic, angiographic and clinical variables on the duration of hospitalisation and in-hospital mortality separately in men and in women.

RESULTS

Women constituted 30.7% of patients treated with PCI because of AMI, 39.6% of those with UA and just 25.8% of those with SA. Women were significantly older than men, had a higher BMI, and more often suffered from hypertension and diabetes. The duration of hospitalisation was the same in men and women if the reason for PCI was SA or UA, however, in case of AMI women were hospitalised significantly longer than men. In the univariate analysis gender had no influence on in-hospital mortality regardless of the reason for PCI treatment. Among the variables subjected to multivariate analysis female gender, age, BMI, diabetes, hypercholesterolaemia, indication for PCI, final TIMI flow in the target vessel and cardiogenic shock as a complication of AMI were shown to affect mortality. Significant effects on in-hospital mortality for women were exhibited only by cardiogenic shock. Among men, indication for PCI, age, diabetes and final TIMI flow in the target vessel also had a significant influence on in-hospital mortality.

CONCLUSIONS

Stable angina is a reason for performing PCI more rarely in women than in men. Women with CAD are older than men and have more risk factors. The in-hospital mortality among patients treated with PCI because of SA is independent of gender. Cardiogenic shock appeared to be the only factor that influences in-hospital mortality in women. In the case of men such an influence is also observed for indication for PCI (AMI, UA or SA), diabetes and final TIMI flow in the target vessel.