Study Looks at Impact of COVID-19 Lockdown on STEMI Patients

FRIDAY, June 9, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) during the first COVID-19 lockdown have reduced survival, according to a study published online June 7 in the European Heart Journal-Quality of Care & Clinical Outcomes.

Mattia Lunardi, M.D, from the University of Galway in Ireland, and colleagues predicted the long-term health outcomes in terms of survival and quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) and cost of reduced treatment of STEMIs that occurred during the first COVID-19 lockdown in the United Kingdom and Spain compared to the expected prelockdown outcomes for an equivalent group of patients.

The researchers found that compared with patients presenting with a STEMI prepandemic, STEMI patients during the first U.K. lockdown were predicted to lose an average of 1.55 life-years and 1.17 QALYs. The total additional lifetime costs calculated at the population level were €41.3 million based on an annual STEMI incidence of 49,332 cases, mainly driven by the costs of work absenteeism. STEMI patients during the lockdown in Spain were expected to survive 2.03 years less than prepandemic patients, with a corresponding reduction of 1.63 in projected QALYs. Reduced percutaneous coronary intervention access would lead to additional costs of €88.6 million at the population level.

"Patients and societies will pay the price of reduced heart attack treatment during just one month of lockdown for years to come," a coauthor said in a statement. "Public awareness campaigns should emphasize the benefits of timely care, even during a pandemic or other crisis."

Several authors disclosed ties to the pharmaceutical and medical device industries.

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