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Table 5. Patient Clinical Status Definitions to Guide
Revascularization
Elective The patient's cardiac function has been stable in the days or
weeks before intervention (whether surgical or procedural).
The intervention could be deferred without increased risk of
compromise to cardiac outcome.
Urgent Intervention is required during the same hospitalization to
minimize chance of further clinical deterioration. Examples include,
but are not limited to, worsening sudden chest pain, heart failure,
acute myocardial infarction, anatomy, intra-aortic balloon pump,
unstable angina, with intravenous nitroglycerin, or rest angina.
Emergency Patients requiring emergency intervention will have ongoing,
refractory (difficult, complicated, and/or unmanageable),
unrelenting cardiac compromise, with or without hemodynamic
instability, and not responsive to any form of therapy except
cardiac intervention. An emergency intervention is one in which
there should be no delay in providing operative intervention.
Emergency/salvage Patients requiring emergency/salvage intervention are those who
require cardiopulmonary resuscitation en route to the operating
room, or procedure room, before induction of anesthesia or who
require extracorporeal membrane oxygenation to maintain life.
