Effect of Adjunctive Thrombus Aspiration on In-Hospital and 3-Year Outcomes in Patients With ST–Segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction and Large Native Coronary Artery Thrombus Burden

Although the long-term clinical benefit of adjunctive thrombus aspiration (TA) during primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) remains controversial, the impact of TA in patients with large thrombus has not been evaluated. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of adjunctive TA during PPCI on clinical outcomes in patients with ST–segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and a large thrombus. We assessed the effect of adjunctive TA on in-hospital and 3-year clinical outcomes in 627 patients with STEMI and a large thrombus in the native coronary artery. The cumulative 3-year incidence of all-cause death was not significantly different between the 2 groups (91.5% vs 89.0%, log-rank test p = 0.347). After adjusting for confounders, the risk of all-cause death in the TA group was not significantly lower than that in the non-TA group (hazard ratio 1.11, 95% confidence interval 0.60 to 3.54, p = 0.674). The adjusted risks of target lesion revascularization, nonfatal acute myocardial infarction, and stent thrombosis were also not significantly different between the 2 groups. In conclusion, adjunctive TA during PPCI was not associated with better in-hospital and 3-year all-cause deaths in patients with STEMI and a large coronary artery thrombus.