Circadian Rhythm in Acute Myocardial Infarction

Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death worldwide, regardless of the country's economic status. We studied 50 patients admitted to the Bragança Medical-Surgical Emergency Service of the Nordeste Local Health Unit who were diagnosed with acute myocardial infarction in 2015 and 2016, with the aim of describing the circadian rhythm of acute myocardial infarction. Of the 50 patients studied, 52 per cent were male and the most common age group was 80 to 89 years old (38 per cent), with an average age of 79.64 years, ranging from 41 to 101 years old. The predominant cardiovascular risk factors were hypertension, dyslipidaemia and diabetes. The onset of acute myocardial infarction symptoms occurred mostly between 6 and 12 hours. The average time of onset was 10 hours and 1 minute. On average, the patients in this study took 4 hours and 22 minutes between symptom onset and admission to the emergency department. The mortality rate for the patients studied was 34 per cent.