Summary

For patients with ST-elevation myocdardial infarction (STEMI), reperfusion with primary PCI is recommended if it can be performed within 90 minutes. However, treatment within this narrow window can not always be achieved, especially for patients who present to a hospital without a PCI facility. Fibrinolytic therapy is still the preferred treatment in this setting. The Combined Abciximab Reteplase Stent Study in Acute Myocardial Infarction [CARESS] trial was designed to compare a strategy of early transfer after fibrinolysis versus a strategy of medical treatment and transfer for PCI only if there was no evidence of reperfusion.