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The article discusses a study which investigated the rate of long-term mortality associated with supine blood pressure (BP) among patients who were admitted to medical intensive care unit (ICU) because of acute chest pain. The study utilized data from the Registry of Information and Knowledge About Swedish Heart Intensive Care Admissions (RIKS-HIA), which included 119,151 patients who were treated for chest pain from 1997 to 2007. Study authors utilized the Cox proportional hazard model to examine one-year mortality rate. They concluded that supine systolic BP during admission is inversely related to one-year mortality rate.

Background: Acute myocardial infarction (MI) is a leading cause for morbidity and mortality in Sweden. We aimed to compare patients with an acute MI included in the Register of information and knowledge about Swedish heart intensive care admissions (RIKS-HIA, now included in the register Swedeheart) and in the Swedish statistics of acute myocardial infarctions (S-AMI)., Methods: Population based register study including RIKS-HIA, S-AMI, the National patient register and the Cause of death register. Odds ratios were determined by logistic regression analysis., Results: From 2001 to 2007, 114,311 cases in RIKS-HIA and 198,693 cases in S-AMI were included with a discharge diagnosis of an acute MI. Linkage was possible for 110,958 cases. These cases were younger, more often males, had fewer concomitant diseases and were more often treated with invasive coronary artery procedures than patients included in S-AMI only. There were substantial regional differences in proportions of patients reported to RIKS-HIA., Conclusions: Approximately half of all patients with an acute MI were included in RIKS-HIA. They represented a relatively more healthy population than patients included in S-AMI only. S-AMI covered almost all patients with an acute MI but had limited information about the patients. Used in combination, these two registers can give better prerequisites for improved quality of care of all patients with acute coronary syndromes.

Background: Daylight saving time shifts can be looked upon as large-scale natural experiments to study the effects of acute minor sleep deprivation and circadian rhythm disturbances. Limited evidence suggests that these shifts have a short-term influence on the risk of acute myocardial infarction (AMI), but confirmation of this finding and its variation in magnitude between individuals is not clear., Methods: To identify AMI incidence on specific dates, we used the Register of Information and Knowledge about Swedish Heart Intensive Care Admission, a national register of coronary care unit admissions in Sweden. We compared AMI incidence on the first seven days after the transition with mean incidence during control periods. To assess effect modification, we calculated the incidence ratios in strata defined by patient characteristics., Results: Overall, we found an elevated incidence ratio of 1.039 (95% confidence interval, 1.003-1.075) for the first week after the spring clock shift forward. The higher risk tended to be more pronounced among individuals taking cardiac medications and having low cholesterol and triglycerides. There was no statistically significant change in AMI incidence following the autumn shift. Patients with hyperlipidemia and those taking statins and calcium-channel blockers tended to have a lower incidence than expected. Smokers did not ever have a higher incidence., Conclusions: Our data suggest that even modest sleep deprivation and disturbances in the sleep-wake cycle might increase the risk of AMI across the population. Confirmation of subgroups at higher risk may suggest preventative strategies to mitigate this risk., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: The primary objective of this report was to describe the infrastructures and processes of selected European and North American pre-hospital fibrinolysis (PHL) programs. A secondary objective is to report the outcome data of the PHL programs surveyed., Background: Despite its benefit in reducing mortality in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction, PHL remained underused in North America. Examination of existing programs may provide insights to help address barriers to the implementation of PHL., Methods: The leading investigators of PHL research projects/national registries were invited to respond to a survey on the organization and outcomes of their affiliated PHL programs., Results: PHL was successfully deployed in a wide range of geographic territories (Europe: France, Sweden, Vienna, England, and Wales; North America: Houston, Edmonton, and Nova Scotia) and was delivered by healthcare professionals of varying expertise. In-hospital major adverse outcomes were rare with mortality of 3% to 6%, reinfarction of 2% to 5%, and stroke of <2%., Conclusions: Combining formal protocols for PHL for some patients with direct transportation of others to a percutaneous coronary intervention hospital for primary percutaneous coronary intervention would allow for tailored reperfusion therapy for patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction. Insights from a variety of international settings may promote widespread use of PHL and increase timely coronary reperfusion worldwide., (Copyright © 2011 American College of Cardiology Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)