Association of Frailty With In-hospital and Long-term Outcomes Among STEMI Patients Receiving Primary Percutaneous...

Frailty is generally a marker of worse prognosis. The impact of frailty on both in-hospital and long-term outcomes in ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients has not been well described. Given this context, we aimed to determine the prevalence and impact of frailty on in-hospital and 1-year outcomes in STEMI patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (pPCI).

This retrospective study reviewed STEMI patients aged ≥ 65 years who underwent pPCI at 1 of the 2 pPCI-capable hospitals at Vancouver Coastal Health. A frailty index (FI) was determined using a deficit-accumulation model, with those with an FI > 0.25 being defined as frail. The primary outcome was 1-year all-cause mortality. The secondary outcomes included in-hospital all-cause mortality, a composite of adverse in-hospital outcomes (all-cause mortality, cardiogenic shock, heart failure, reinfarction, major bleeding, or stroke), and the individual components of the composite.

A total of 1579 patients were reviewed, of which 228 (14.4%) were determined to be frail. After multivariable adjustment, greater frailty (ie, increasing FI) was associated with increased in-hospital all-cause mortality (odds ratio [OR], 1.88; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.50-2.35, P < 0.001), the composite adverse in-hospital outcome (OR, 1.46; 95% CI, 1.27-1.68, P < 0.001), and 1-year all-cause mortality (OR, 1.48; 95% CI, 1.10-2.00, P = 0.011).

In a contemporary STEMI cohort of older patients receiving pPCI, 1 in 7 patients were frail, with greater frailty being independently associated with increased in-hospital and long-term adverse outcomes. These findings highlight the need for the early recognition of frailty and implementation of an interdisciplinary approach toward the management of frail STEMI patients.