Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2008 Dec 15;102(12):1595-601.
doi: 10.1016/j.amjcard.2008.08.008. Epub 2008 Sep 27.

Thirty-year trends (1975-2005) in the magnitude, patient characteristics, and hospital outcomes of patients with acute myocardial infarction complicated by ventricular fibrillation

Robert J Goldberg  1 , Jorge Yarzebski, Frederick A Spencer, Juan C Zevallos, Darleen Lessard, Joel M Gore
Affiliations

Thirty-year trends (1975-2005) in the magnitude, patient characteristics, and hospital outcomes of patients with acute myocardial infarction complicated by ventricular fibrillation

Robert J Goldberg et al. Am J Cardiol. .

Abstract

Limited contemporary data are available describing the incidence rates, hospital prognosis, and factors associated with the occurrence of ventricular fibrillation (VF) in patients hospitalized with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). The objectives of our study were to examine 3-decade-long trends (1975 to 2005) in the magnitude, predictors, and hospital case-fatality rates associated with VF in residents of a large New England metropolitan area hospitalized at all area medical centers with an uncomplicated AMI. The study population consisted of 7,472 residents of the Worcester (Massachusetts) metropolitan area hospitalized with an uncomplicated AMI in 15 annual periods from 1975 to 2005. The overall proportion of patients who developed VF was 4.2%. The incidence rates of VF remained stable from 1975 to 1995 but decreased thereafter, reaching their lowest frequency in 2005 (1.9%). Hospital case-fatality rates were significantly higher in patients with (40.9%) compared with those without (2.5%) VF. Decreases in hospital death rates over time were observed in patients with and without VF, with the decreases in death rates being greater for patients with VF. Patients who developed a Q-wave MI or a left or right bundle branch block were at particularly increased risk for developing VF. In conclusion, our results indicate that the incidence and hospital death rates associated with VF have decreased during recent years.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Frequency of Ventricular Fibrillation in Patients With An Uncomplicated Acute Myocardial Infarction
Figure 2
Figure 2
Hospital Case-Fatality Rates (CFR) According to Presence of Ventricular Fibrillation (VF) in Patients With An Uncomplicated Acute Myocardial Infarction
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Goldberg RJ, Gore JM, Alpert JS, Dalen JE. Recent changes in the attack rates and survival rates of acute myocardial infarction (1975-1981): The Worcester Heart Attack Study. JAMA. 1986;255:2774–2779. - PubMed
    1. Goldberg RJ, Gore JM, Alpert JS, Dalen JE. Incidence and case fatality rates of acute myocardial infarction (1975-1984): The Worcester Heart Attack Study. Am Heart J. 1988;115:761–767. - PubMed
    1. Goldberg RJ, Yarzebski J, Lessard D, Gore JM. A two-decades (1975-1995) long experience in the incidence, in-hospital and long-term case-fatality rates of acute myocardial infarction: A community-wide perspective. J Am Coll Cardiol. 1999;33:1533–1539. - PubMed
    1. Goldberg RJ, Spencer FA, Yarzebski J, Lessard D, Gore JM, Alpert JS, Dalen JE. A 25-year perspective into the changing landscape of patients hospitalized with acute myocardial infarction (the Worcester Heart Attack Study) Am J Cardiol. 2004;94:1373–1378. - PubMed
    1. Chiriboga D, Yarzebski J, Goldberg RJ, Gore JM, Alpert JS. Temporal trends (1975 through 1990) in the incidence and case-fatality rates of primary ventricular fibrillation complicating acute myocardial infarction: A community-wide perspective. Circulation. 1994;89:998–1003. - PubMed

Publication types