2009 Volume 50 Issue 6 Pages 711-721
The aim of the study was to compare the course of myocardial infarction in women versus men in Upper Silesia, an industrial region in the south of Poland.
The study comprised 1003 patients with either ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) or non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI). The patients were divided into group 1 (300 females) and group 2 (control, 703 males). The groups differed significantly with respect to age, incidence of hypertension, diabetes, and smoking. In group 1 STEMI occurred significantly less frequently than NSTEMI. Taking this into account, we divided the studied cohort into group A (STEMI patients) and group B (NSTEMI patients), each subdivided into women and men.
In the 30 day long follow-up, group 1 patients had significantly lower creatine kinase activity, higher occurrence of ventricular tachycardia, lower percentage of intra-aortic balloon pump use, and longer hospital stay compared with group 2. Group 1 was characterized by significantly higher mortality and target lesion reocclusion (TLR).
The medical course of myocardial infarction in women is similar to that in men, as is the treatment of acute coronary syndrome. In our study, patients from both groups underwent invasive examination with consecutive interventional treatment with similar frequency. However, this finding is not reflected in the outcomes. Women had higher risks of death and TLR in 30 day follow-up. Taking this into consideration, we should attempt to identify the factors responsible for this situation by expanding the analysis to a larger population to allow firm conclusions to be drawn.
