Do X‐ray determined cardiac volume and signs of congestive heart failure provide additional prognostic information after myocardial infarction if the left ventricular ejection fraction is known?

Cardiac volume (CV) was measured and indices of pulmonary congestion (PCG) were judged from routine chest films taken post myocardial infarction (AMI) in a consecutive series of 477 patients (340 first and 137 recurrent AMIs). Cardiac volume (CV) and signs of PCG were compared to left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), measured with isotope technique, and the prognostic value of all the parameters was assessed after 1 and 5 years. The accuracy of CV and PCG in predicting impaired LVEF was low (62% and 50% respectively). Although specificity is suboptimal, however, these parameters provided valuable prognostic information. For example, patients with signs of PCG had a very high 1 and 5 years' mortality, and two-thirds of those who died during the first year of observation had enlarged CV. The independent value of LVEF determination was mainly observed in re-AMI patients. A more restricted use of this expensive procedure may therefore be recommended.