LOC-HEART
Research type
Research Study
Full title
DOES THE LOCATION OF THE CULPRIT LESION AFFECT THE TIME TAKEN FOR PATIENTS WITH ST-ELEVATION MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION TO CALL FOR HELP?
IRAS ID
235235
Contact name
Angela Hoye
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Hull
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
A heart attack is caused by a blood clot that blocks off the blood flow in one of the blood vessels to the heart. This is associated with symptoms such as chest pains, and leads to permanent damage to the heart. The earlier a patient gets to hospital for treatment of their heart attack, the better their chances of survival. Patients with a severe heart attack have an abnormal ECG (showing ST-elevation) and need to have emergency treatment with an angioplasty procedure. This involves injecting dye into the blood vessels to find the blockage, and opening it with a balloon to restore blood flow, thereby limiting the amount of damage done.
This study will look at what factors might be contributing to delays in patients calling for help. In addition to demographic factors, we will specifically look at whether the site of the blockage affects the time taken for a person to call for medical help. It is plausible that the bigger the blood vessel, the greater the size of the heart attack, and therefore the earlier the patient might call for help. However, this has never been previously investigated.
All patients who are admitted with an ST-elevation heart attack will be invited to be a part of the study, from a single tertiary care centre, over 3 months.
Once informed consent has been obtained, participants will be asked questions covering basic information, their demographics and their symptoms during their heart attack. They will also have to fill out a short questionnaire about how long they delayed calling for help, and other details surrounding their help-seeking behaviour. The study will also involve evaluation of the angiography images to determine which part of the blood vessel was the cause of the heart attack.REC name
Wales REC 6
REC reference
18/WA/0049
Date of REC Opinion
6 Feb 2018
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion