Death After PCI Remains Rare (0.5%) — AMI Most Common Cause
Death After PCI Remains Rare (0.5%) — AMI Most Common Cause
Source: The American Journal of Cardiology
Published: February 2026
Key Findings (PROGRESS-COMPLICATIONS Registry, 2014–2024)
• 22,000 PCI procedures analyzed at two high-volume U.S. centers.
• Overall in-hospital mortality: 0.5% (115 patients).
• 13% of deaths occurred during the procedure.
• 8.7% occurred within the first 24 hours.
• 78.3% occurred after the first 24 hours.
Main Causes of Death
• Acute Myocardial Infarction (AMI): 58.3%
• Infection: 6.1%
• Aortic dissection: 3.5%
Patient Profile (Those Who Died)
• Mean age: 72 years
• 62.6% male
• High burden of comorbidities:
• Dyslipidemia (88.7%)
• CKD (66.1%)
• Heart failure (61.7%)
• Many had prior MI (41%) or prior PCI (37%)
Clinical Insight
Most deaths were related to severity of initial presentation, not procedural failure, and occurred beyond the first 24 hours.
Bottom Line:
Modern PCI carries very low in-hospital mortality (0.5%), with AMI being the leading cause when death occurs.