Hospital Delay In Administering Angioplasty To Heart Attack Patients Almost Doubles Death Rate

Hospital delay in administering angioplasty to heart attack patients practically doubles death rate

A new study documents the importance of hospitals giving heart attack patients prompt angioplasty.  So-called “system delay” in treating patients with heart attacks — the time from the first ambulance call to the start of angioplasty or other hospital treatment — almost doubles the patient’s risk of dying.  Heart attack patients treated at the hospital with angioplasty after a delay of two hours or more had almost twice the death rate of those patients treated sooner. If a loved one has died after suffering a heart attack, consult with Berger & Lagnese, LLC to find out whether unnecessary delays or other medical errors were a cause.