What is the recommendation for aspiration thrombectomy before primary PCI for patients with STEMI?
The 2011 PCI and 2013 STEMI guidelines (9,10) Class IIa recommendation for aspiration thrombectomy before primary PCI was based on the results of 2 RCTs (29,31,32) and 1 meta-analysis (30) and was driven in large measure by the results of TAPAS (Thrombus Aspiration During Primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention in Acute Myocardial Infarction Study), a single-center study that randomized 1071 patients with STEMI to aspiration thrombectomy before primary PCI or primary PCI only (29,32).