When someone suffers a heart attack, doctors must decide how much of the heart's plumbing to fix immediately. For patients with multiple blocked arteries, some doctors choose to only fix the artery causing the current problem. This study looked at what happens when doctors choose to fix more than one blocked artery during the initial procedure.
Researchers followed 280 patients over a period of about 10 years. They compared patients who had only one artery fixed to those who had multiple arteries treated. The results showed that patients who had multiple blockages treated had a lower risk of dying or needing urgent surgery later on. Specifically, the group where doctors treated more blockages had a lower rate of combined serious events, including death and heart attacks, compared to the group where treatment was delayed.
While the results suggest that treating more blockages is safer, it is important to remember this was a substudy of a larger trial. The findings specifically look at patients with certain types of heart disease. You should talk with your doctor to understand how these findings apply to your specific heart health and treatment plan.
