Early use of aspirin after symptoms in patients with st- segment elevation myocardial infarction undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention

Objectives: To determine the frequency of pre-hospital aspirin use in patients presenting with ST- segment elevation myocardial infarction and to assess the demographic and clinical characteristics of the patients taken pre-hospital aspirin. Methodology: It was a prospective study conducted at tertiary care hospital for the duration of six months. About 657 patients aged between 18-80 years, of either gender and diagnosed with ST-elevation myocardial infraction were included in the study. Use of pre-hospital aspirin after symptoms was assessed in all patients, then followed and outcomes such as discharge status and length of hospital in days were evaluated. Results: Overall mean age was 54.60 +/- 12.06 years and most of them were males (79.1%). About 254 patients (38.7%) received aspirin before transfer to hospital and 403 patients (61.3%) received aspirin after arrival in hospital. Frequency of pre-hospital use of aspirin was significantly associated with gender (p=0.001), educational status (p=0.006), and monthly income (p=0.003). The mean rank of length of hospital stay was similar significantly lower in STEMI patients who received pre-hospital aspirin as compared to those who did not receive pre-hospital aspirin (p=0.001). Moreover, the death rate was lower in patients with pre-hospital aspirin administration as compared to those who did not receive pre-hospital aspirin (1.2%vs2%). However, the difference between pre-hospital aspirin use and discharge status was not statistically significant (p=0.434). Conclusion: Frequency of pre-hospital aspirin use was lower in patients with STEMI. Gender, educational status, and socio-economic status were the significant factors for pre-hospital aspirin use.