Rapid Heart Attack Diagnostic Pathway Does Not Reduce Emergency Department Stay, Study Finds

A new study, the PRESC1SE-MI trial, presented at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress 2026 and simultaneously published in The Lancet, found that while a rapid 0/1-hour diagnostic pathway for heart attacks in the emergency department (ED) was safe, it did not reduce the length of time patients spent in the ED or increase direct discharge compared to a slower pathway. This suggests that other factors, such as specialist review and bed availability, may have a greater influence on ED length of stay.