• Paola Ballarino, Gianfranco Cervellin, Cecilia Trucchi, Fiorella Altomonte, Alessio Bertini, Laura Bonfanti, Maria A Bressan, Giuseppe Carpinteri, Paola Noto, Francesco Gavelli, Luca Molinari, Filippo Patrucco, Pier Paolo Sainaghi, Silvia Caristia, Mario Cavazza, Mauro Gallitelli, Stefania Longo, Paolo Cremonesi, Andrea Orsi, Filippo Ansaldi, Rossella Marino, Salvatore Di Somma, Luigi M Castello, Paolo Moscatelli, Gian Carlo Avanzi, and Great Network Italy.
• Emergency Department, San Martino University Hospital, Genoa, Italy.
• Minerva Med. 2020 Apr 1; 111 (2): 120-132.

BackgroundThe aim of this study was to describe the population of patients arriving in several Italian Emergency Departments (EDs) complaining of chest pain suggestive of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) in order to evaluate the incidence of ACS in this cohort and the association between ACS and different clinical parameters and risk factors.MethodsThis is an observational prospective study, conducted from the 1st January to the 31st December 2014 in 11 EDs in Italy. Patients presenting to ED with chest pain, suggestive of ACS, were consecutively enrolled.ResultsPatients with a diagnosis of ACS (N.=1800) resulted to be statistically significant older than those without ACS (NO ACS; N.=4630) (median age: 70 vs. 59, P<0.001), and with a higher prevalence of males (66.1% in ACS vs. 57.5% in NO ACS, P<0.001). ECG evaluation, obtained at ED admission, showed new onset alterations in 6.2% of NO ACS and 67.4% of ACS patients. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that the following parameters were predictive for ACS: age, gender, to be on therapy for cardio-vascular disease (CVD), current smoke, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, heart rate, ECG alterations, increased BMI, reduced SaO2.ConclusionsResults from this observational study strengthen the importance of the role of the EDs in ruling in and out chest pain patients for the diagnosis of ACS. The analysis put in light important clinical and risk factors that, if promptly recognized, can help Emergency Physicians to identify patients who are more likely to be suffering from ACS.

22 keywords...

hide…