Key points are not available for this paper at this time.
A prospective randomized controlled study compared a two-week and three-week hospital stay in 138 patients with uncomplicated but definite myocardial infarction. Patients with severe ventricular arrhythmias, heart block, hypotension, persistence of coronary pain or congestive heart failure into the fifth day, or a prior myocardial infarction within the preceding six months were excluded. During the six month follow-up period there was no difference between the 69 two-week and the 69 three-week patients in frequency of return to work, anxiety or depression, development of angina or congestive heart failure, aneurysm formation, acute coronary insufficiency, myocardial infarction or death. There appears to be no additional benefit to the patient with an uncomplicated myocardial infarction from a three-week as compared to a two-week hospital stay. (N Engl J Med 288:1141–1144, 1973)
Hutter et al. (Thu,) studied this question.