Acute coronary syndrome in elderly: aspects of patient management

Abstract

Coronary heart disease is the leading cause of death worldwide. Over the past few decades, life expectancy has increased, which has led to an aging population in developed countries, so the average age of patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) has steadily increased in recent decades. The inclusion of elderly and senile patients in randomized clinical trials does not reflect the age-related association of these diseases. However, antithrombotic therapy and interventional treatment are the basis of treatment in patients with ACS of any age, including the elderly. For older patients, there may be a mismatch between chronological and biological age. The question of how close the treatment of elderly patients with ACS is to the level of current recommendations and whether it is possible to apply them unconditionally in this group of patients does not have a definite answer. Current recommendations and the underlying randomized clinical trials are focused on any one disease, whereas in the elderly in most cases multimorbid pathology occurs. In general, elderly patients with ACS should be treated using the same methods as younger patients, however, the presence of comorbid diseases in an elderly patient naturally increases the risk of complications, makes the patient’s prognosis heavier, significantly affects treatment tactics, limits the possibility of using conventional approaches when choosing a drug therapy.

Keywords

• acute coronary syndrome
• elderly patient
• myocardial infarction
• efficacy and safety of therapy
• percutaneous coronary intervention
• polypharmacy
• geriatric syndrome
• prognosis
• antithrombotic therapy
• secondary prophylaxis