Study examines outcomes of erythropoietin use for heart attack patients undergoing PCI
Tuesday, May 10, 2011 - 15:30
in Health & Medicine
Intravenous administration of epoetin alfa, a product that stimulates red blood cell production, to patients with heart attack who were undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI; procedures such as balloon angioplasty or stent placement used to open narrowed coronary arteries), did not provide reduction in the size of the heart muscle involved and was associated with higher rates of adverse cardiovascular events, according to a study in the May 11 issue of JAMA.