October 1, 1998Journal of Internal Medicine
Could time trends in myocardial infarction incidence be due to diagnostic inconsistency? A study of the validity of hospital discharge diagnoses
Population
205 male subjects with a hospital discharge diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction from the University…
Design
Cross-sectional
Authors
Discussion
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Member takes
Implication
Supports genuine AMI incidence decline in 1980s Sweden; leaves open generalizability to other populations and eras.
Structured PICO
P
Population
205 male subjects (all aged 30-64 years and a random sample of those aged 65-89 years) with a hospital discharge diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) from the University Hospital in Umeå, Sweden, during 1981-1982 and 1984-1985.
O
Outcome
Proportion of patients fulfilling diagnostic criteria for definite or possible AMI based on medical records and autopsy protocols
The observed decline in acute myocardial infarction incidence in Sweden during the 1980s represents a true epidemiological trend rather than an artifact of diagnostic inconsistency.
Cite This Study
Bluhm et al. (1998) studied this question.