Hemorrhagic complications of thrombolytic therapy.

Thrombolytic therapy salvages ischemic myocardium by rapidly reestablishing coronary artery patency in acute myocardial infarction. One of its major limitations is the complication of hemorrhage. A retrospective study of myocardial infarction patients who received thrombolytic therapy was performed to determine risk factors associated with a hemorrhagic event. Three hundred fifty patients were enrolled, and 20 (5.7%) had a bleeding complication, including four patients (1.1%) who had an intracranial hemorrhage. The factors associated with an increased risk for a significant hemorrhagic event were age (> 65 years) and female gender. Factors associated with an intracranial hemorrhage were age (> 65 years) and a history of hypertension.