Early coronary angiography and percutaneous coronary intervention are associated with improved outcomes after out of hospital cardiac arrest

Abstract Aim Early coronary angiography (CAG) and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) are associated with better outcomes in subjects resuscitated from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). We sought to determine the relative contributions of early CAG and PCI to outcomes and adverse events after OHCA. Methods We analyzed 599 OHCA subjects from a prospective two-center registry. Hospital survival, functional outcomes and adverse events were compared between subjects undergoing early CAG (within 24 h) with or without PCI and subjects not undergoing early CAG. We adjusted for propensity to perform early CAG and PCI and for post-resuscitation illness severity and care. Results Early CAG subjects had improved rates of hospital survival (56.2% versus 31.0%, OR 2.85 [95% CI 2.04–4.00]; p  Conclusions Early CAG and PCI are associated with improved survival and functional outcomes after OHCA, but only early PCI was associated with a significant benefit after statistical adjustment. Our analysis supports the performance of immediate CAG to determine the need for PCI in selected patients following resuscitation from OHCA.