Is the Outcome of Coronary Stenting Worse in Elderly Patients?

Initial reports of percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) in the elderly (≥: 75 years) showed a significantly lower primary success rate, higher in-hospital mortality, and a higher risk of emergency or elective coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) compared to younger patients. There are few data concerning acute outcomes and clinical follow-up after the use of coronary stenting in the elderly compared to < the 75-year-old age group. We evaluated 82 elderly patients and 280 younger patients who received Palmaz-Schatz stents during 1995, at a time when high pressure deployment and antiplatelet therapy was routinely used. The success rate and acute major complications were not significantly different between the elderly and younger patients. Clinical events (death, myocardial infarction [MI], repeat PTCA, or CABG) during 6-month follow-up were also not significantly different. Coronary stenting in the elderly can be carried out with a high success rate and low incidence of acute major complications. Thus, short-term clinical outcomes in elderly patients appear similar to results obtained in younger patients.     

LIVING IN ONE-PARENT FAMILIES: RELATIONSHIPS AND ATTITUDES OF 16-YEAR-OLDS

Summary The proportions of 16-year-olds in the National Child Development Study who are not living with both their natural parents in 1974 are examined and compared with proportions in earlier follow-ups. The children who have ever lived in one-parent families are selected for more detailed examination, such as the reasons for their parental situation, the age their families broke up and the ratio of motherless to fatherless at each age. The children's view of their relationship with their parents or new parent figures and their attitudes towards their own future marriage and family are considered and compared with those of children still living with both their own parents. The overall conclusion is that the differences in these respects between children in one and two-parent families are very slight, suggesting that the attitudes of children in one-parent families towards their future family life have not been greatly affected by their own childhood experiences.