British heart attack patients are a third more likely to die than those in Sweden, according to a study.
Thousands of people have died because the NHS has been too slow to start using the latest treatments, the researchers found. They concluded that more than 11,000 lives could have been saved during the past seven years if survival rates in Britain had matched those in Sweden.
Professor Harry Hemingway, of the National Institute for Cardiovascular Outcomes Research, University College London, who led the study, said: “Our findings are a cause for concern. The uptake and use of new technologies and effective treatments recommended in guidelines has been far quicker in Sweden. This has contributed to large differences in the management and outcomes of patients.”