RICVAL STUDY - ACUTE MYOCARDIAL-INFARCTION IN VALENCIA - DATA OF 1,124 PATIENTS DURING THE FIRST 12 MONTHS OF THE REGISTER

Background and objectives. Information on the management of acute myoc ardial infarction in Spain is still scarce. The Register of Acute Myoc ardial Infarction of Valencia City (RICVAL) was established to collect , in a prospectively and uniformly way, data of patients with acute my ocardial infarctions discharged from Valencia coronary care units, in order to obtain updated information on the management of these patient s. Data of the first twelve months of the register are presented. Meth ods. Using standardised variables, demographic, clinical, procedural a nd outcome data from patients with acute myocardial infarction were co llected at the eight hospitals collaborating in the RICVAL, from 1 Dec ember 1993 to 30 November 1994. Results. The eight participating hospi tals cover 1,665,720 people. During 12 months, 1,124 patients were dis charged from the participating coronary care units. Mean age was 65.1 years and 23.9% were female. The case fatality rate was 16.9%. Left ve ntricular failure (Killip 2, 3 and 4) was present in 42%. Thrombolytic therapy was applied in 43.5% with a median time delay of 210 minutes from chest pain onset. The delay time in initiating thrombolysis was l onger in the women and in the elderly. Conclusion. Analysis of present data shows the feasibility of an acute myocardial infarction register in Valencia City. The RICVAL study will allow a better knowledge of d emographic, clinical, procedural and outcome data in patients with myo cardial infarction. The case fatality rate is still high when we consi der that an acceptable level of thrombolytic therapy has been reached. The long delay time in initiating thrombolysis, particulary in the el derly and in the women, must be emphasized.