When I got into health care one of the big fusses was whether Genentech’s Activase (TPA) was more effective than Streptokinase in clot-busting immediately after heart attacks. You may recall that in the late 1980s Genetech made its name and fortune on the back of the fact that a huge clinical trial evidenced that Activase saved 2 more lives per thousand incidentsat a cost of ten times the amount. While the health service researchers amongst us thought that this was a huge price to pay for a few incremental lives saved, a combination of aggressive marketing by Genentech, ER docs wanting the best outcomes (and being fearful of malpractice lawyers, some of whom showed up on briefings from Genentech detailers) and insurers OKing the bills mean that it became the treatment of choice and a $250m drug by the early 1990s.  It’s still around that level of sales ten years later.

NEJM has a danish study this morning that shows that acute angioplasty has better outcomes than clot-busting drugs by a factor of more than 2:1 and nearly 4:1 for stopping repeat MIs within 30 days. So can we expect a massive increase in angioplasty and a decrease in clot-buster use?  And if not, can we not also expect an increase in suits against hospitals using clot-busters instead of angioplasty?