ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Acute coronary syndrome is one of the most frequent indications for hospitalization. Acute intervention has been increasingly emphasized during the last decade. Norwegian local hospitals have few follow-up data for this condition. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A cohort from a local hospital with a catchment area of 100,000 inhabitants was studied retrospectively and followed-up prospectively. Journals and ECG results were reviewed for all patients who were admitted locally or referred to PCI with the diagnosis acute coronary syndrome. The patients were classified as having either myocardial infarction with ST-elevation (STEMI), myocardial infarction without ST-elevation (NSTEMI), or unstable angina pectoris (UAP). Surviving patients were contacted for 6-month follow-up data. RESULTS: 206 patients with acute coronary syndrome were included (37% women). There were 43 patients (22%) with STEMI, 127 (62%) with NSTEMI and 32 (17%) with UAP. The mean age for onset of myocardial infarction was 67 years in the STEMI group and 76 years in the NSTEMI group. Six months mortality rate for the entire group was 17.5%, and rates for the subgroups were STEMI (14%), NSTEMI (23%) and UAP (3%). There were no deaths in the 15 patients with STEMI who underwent primary PCI < 12 hours after onset. INTERPRETATION: Mortality in acute coronary syndrome was higher in our study than for that reported in randomized trials, but comparable to recent reports on mortality in patients with NSTEMI.
