ST-elevation myocardial infarction patients can be enrolled in randomized trials before emergent coronary intervention without sacrificing door-to-balloon time.

Background: Multicenter trials are necessary to compare the effectiveness of new drugs and devices for patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). However, enrollment of STEMI patients in clinical trials could be detrimental to patients if it significantly delayed reperfusion therapy. We sought to determine whether STEMI patients treated with PCI could be enrolled in clinical trials without prolonging door-to-balloon times.