Acute coronary syndrome in Australia

BackgroundAcute coronary syndrome (ACS) is a significant contributor to both morbidity and mortality in Australia.Generally speaking, sufferers of ACS who live in rural areas and are treated at rural hospitals have poorer outcomes than those living in metropolitan areas. AimsTo characterise the differences in the management and outcomes of rural and metropolitan populations in the context of ACS, as well as identify factors responsible for these differences and suggest how they may be addressed. MethodA review of the current literature surrounding ACS in Australia was undertaken.Through the MEDLINE/PubMed database a thorough search using the terms "acute coronary syndrome" and "Australia" identified 460 papers for review, excluding abstracts and adding "rural", "metropolitan", "reperfusion", and "outcomes" to this search narrowed the results to 149 papers for review.Data was also extracted from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare and other Australian government publications.The review draws on insights from both local and international resources and seeks to provide an understanding of the contemporary landscape of ACS in both rural and metropolitan Australia.