This work published simultaneously in The New England Journal of Medicine showed that patients over eighty years may benefit from an aggressive and invasive treatment strategy that could be unnecessarily denied given age.

The study was conducted in 16 centers in Norway and included 458 octogenarians patients admitted with acute coronary syndromes without ST-segment elevation randomized 1:1 to a more conservative strategy with medical treatment or a more aggressive treatment with coronary angiography. In patients who underwent invasive strategy a reduction of 47% was observed compared with event conservatively branch.

Since the population above age 80 is not represented in the classic works of invasive versus conservative strategy in many places tend not to be treated according to the guidelines. This is the first study specifically designed for this population and showed that elderly patients also benefit from an invasive treatment.

Nicolai Tegn
2015-03-18

Original title: Invasive vs. Conservative Strategy in Patients Over 80 Years With Non–ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction or Unstable Angina Pectoris Clinical Trial – After Eighty Study.