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Purpose: To examine the prognostic significance of low QRS voltage in a large contemporary cohort of patients with a broad spectrum of acute coronary syndromes (ACS)., Methods: 12409 patients with STEMI or NSTE-ACS from the Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events (GRACE) and Canadian ACS I registries were stratified based on the presence of low QRS voltage (<0.5 mV in all limb leads and <1.0 mV in all precordial leads) on the admission ECG. We performed multivariable logistic regression to assess the independent association between low voltage and in-hospital and 6-month mortality, and tested for its interaction with ST-segment deviation for these outcomes., Results: Patients with low voltage (3.2%) had higher GRACE risk scores, rates of prior myocardial infarction, and pathological Q waves, with less prevalent ST-segment deviation and ST-segment depression. They had worse left ventricular function and higher unadjusted rates of in-hospital and 6-month mortality. After adjustment for established prognosticators in the GRACE risk models in multivariable analysis, low voltage was independently associated with higher in-hospital mortality (adjusted OR 1.77, 95% CI 1.13-2.78, P=0.013) and mortality/re-infarction (adjusted OR 1.42, 95% CI 1.05-1.93, P=0.023), but not 6-month mortality (adjusted OR 1.25, 95% CI 0.85-1.84, P=0.27). There was no significant interaction between low voltage and ST-segment deviation for any endpoint (interaction P>0.10 for all endpoints)., Conclusions: Low QRS voltage was associated with previous myocardial infarction and adverse hemodynamic variables at presentation. After adjusting for other prognosticators, low voltage independently predicted higher in-hospital mortality. This increased risk was not modulated by concomitant ST-segment deviation., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: Our purpose was to evaluate long-term mortality and identify factors associated with 1-year mortality in patients who underwent elective percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI)., Background: While long-term outcomes in PCI patients have been reported previously, limited data are currently available regarding the comparative long-term outcomes in PCI patients who receive enoxaparin versus intravenous unfractionated heparin (UFH)., Methods: We conducted a follow-up analysis of clinical outcomes at 1 year in patients enrolled in the STEEPLE (SafeTy and Efficacy of Enoxaparin in Percutaneous coronary intervention patients, an internationaL randomized Evaluation) trial of 3,528 patients undergoing elective PCI. Patients were randomized to receive either intravenous 0.50-mg/kg or 0.75-mg/kg enoxaparin or intravenous UFH during elective PCI procedures. All-cause mortality at 1 year after index PCI was the main outcome measure., Results: Mortality rates were 1.4%, 2.0%, and 1.5% from 1 month to 1 year, and 2.3%, 2.2%, and 1.9% from randomization to 1 year, after index PCI in patients receiving 0.50 mg/kg enoxaparin, 0.75 mg/kg enoxaparin, and UFH, respectively. Multivariate analysis identified nonfatal myocardial infarction and/or urgent target vessel revascularization up to 30 days after index PCI (hazard ratio: 3.5, 95% confidence interval: 1.7 to 7.3; p < 0.001), and major bleeding within 48 h (hazard ratio: 3.0, 95% confidence interval: 1.1 to 8.5; p = 0.04) as the strongest independent risk factors for 1-year mortality., Conclusions: The 1-year mortality rates were low and comparable between patients receiving enoxaparin and UFH during elective PCI. Periprocedural ischemic or bleeding events were the strongest independent predictors of 1-year mortality. (The STEEPLE Trial; NCT00077844).