Outcomes for working age patients after first-time acute coronary syndrome - ANZACS-QI 35

Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) events and the ongoing burden of disease can have a significant impact on the subsequent life-course of working age people.

We report 12-month clinical outcomes for 10,822 patients hospitalized with first-time ACS between 2015-2016 and enrolled in the All New Zealand Acute Coronary Syndrome Quality Improvement (ANZACS-QI) registry, with a focus on people of working age (defined as <65 years).

Nearly half (48%) of first-time ACS occurred in people of working age. Compared to those >65 years, these patients had a high burden of cardiovascular risk factors, and were more likely to be male (75% vs 60%), to be of non-European ethnicity (36% vs 15%), and to be living in areas of high deprivation. Subsequent clinical events were common in the younger patients, with 15% dying or being readmitted for cardiovascular causes within 12 months despite high rates of angiography (96%), revascularization (74%) and evidence-based medical therapy at the time of the index ACS event.

The high risk factor burden and subsequent high rate of clinical events in working age patients reinforces the need for a longer-term focus on strategies to improve clinical outcomes following first-time ACS.