Differences in the outcome of patients undergoing percutaneous coronary interventions at teaching versus non-teaching hospitals

Background Teaching hospitals have superior outcomes for major medical conditions including cardiovascular disease compared to non-teaching hospitals. This may not be applicable to invasive cardiac procedures given a potential increase in complications due to trainee participation. Methods We assessed the impact of hospital teaching status on the outcome of 89,048 patients who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Teaching hospitals were defined as trainee involvement in greater than 50% of PCIs conducted at that hospital and corresponded to teaching status granted by national accreditation agencies. Unadjusted and risk adjusted analyses were used to determine differences in process of care, morbidity and mortality. Results Of 89,048 patients studied, 30,870 received their PCI at teaching hospitals and 58,178 at non-teaching hospitals. Risk-adjusted analysis showed no significant difference in death, in-hospital myocardial infarction, contrast induced nephropathy or gastrointestinal bleeding between teaching and non-teaching hospitals. PCI at teaching hospitals was associated with a lower rate of emergency coronary artery bypass grafting (OR, 0.63; 95% CI, 0.49-0.83; P = .0009) and an increased rate of vascular complications (OR, 1.33; 95% CI, 1.21-1.46; P < .0001). Conclusions General outcomes of patients undergoing PCI are similar across hospital types. However, PCI at teaching hospitals is associated with increased risk of vascular complications and reduced risk of emergency coronary artery bypass grafting compared to non-teaching hospitals.