This clinical trial, the largest ever conducted on this subject, was conducted by French researchers from the F-CRIN Fact network. It is particularly interested to patients with anemia, a condition that affects about one in five people after a heart attack.
Anemia is a drop in hemoglobin levels, which means the blood carries less oxygen, increasing the risk of cardiovascular complications. In France, out of 100,000 annual heart attacks, approximately 20,000 patients are affected by this condition. To understand how to better manage these cases, researchers have tested two transfusion strategies on two groups of patients.
In the first group, patients were transfused in order to maintain their hemoglobin level between 8 and 10 grams per deciliter of blood. In the second group, transfusions were more intensive, aiming to achieve a hemoglobin level above 10 g/dL. Six months later, the results are clear: Patients in the second group had a risk of death from cardiac complications reduced by half compared to those in the first group.
“The idea is not to over-transfuse, but to adjust transfusions until reaching a hemoglobin level above 10 grams. Maintaining a level that is too low in patients who have suffered a heart attack is not beneficial,” explains Professor Tabassome Simon, a doctor and pharmacologist at the Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris (AP-HP) and co-founder of the Fact research network.
This discovery could profoundly change the management of anemic patients after a heart attack, by directing medical teams towards more appropriate and targeted transfusions. The researchers hope that these results will encourage changes in clinical practices, thereby improving the chances of survival for at-risk patients.
By adjusting treatment to maintain sufficient hemoglobin levels, doctors could significantly reduce mortality in people with anemia after a heart attack, offering a new perspective in post-infarction management.
