Heart Foundation summit on treatment gaps for heart attack patients

A new study suggesting higher risk patients with acute coronary syndrome (heart attack and unstable angina) presenting to hospitals are less likely to receive treatment than low or moderate risk patients, highlights the need for action on treatment gaps for heart patients in Australia’s hospital system, the Heart Foundation says.

The Heart Foundation together with the Cardiac Society of Australia and New Zealand (CSANZ) will convene a major summit on acute coronary syndrome (ACS) in Melbourne in October to work through the known treatment gaps faced by patients in primary and acute care and develop strategies and policy proposals to address these.

The new Brisbane study – published in the Medical Journal of Australia – showed that six out of eight therapies were used less frequently in high-risk than in low-risk patients. The study suggests treatment may be withheld for a variety of reasons, including concerns over treatment-related risk to the patient, underestimation of treatment benefits, cost-effectiveness and lack of access to therapies.

The MJA study may be seen online at www.mja.com.au