• Daniela Tomasoni, Marianna Adamo, Leonardo Italia, Luca Branca, Giuliano Chizzola, Claudia Fiorina, Laura Lupi, Riccardo M Inciardi, Dario S Cani, Carlo M Lombardi, Salvatore Curello, and Marco Metra.
• Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory and Cardiology, ASST Spedali Civili di Brescia and Department of Medical and Surgical Specialties, Radiological Sciences, and Public Health, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
• J Cardiovasc Med (Hagerstown). 2020 Nov 1; 21 (11): 874-881.

AimsThe aim of this study was to report the prevalence, clinical features and outcomes of patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) hospitalized during the Corona-Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak compared with those admitted in a previous equivalent period.Methods And ResultsEighty-five patients admitted for STEMI at a high-volume Italian centre were included. Patients hospitalized during the COVID-19 outbreak (21 February-10 April 2020) (40%) were compared with those admitted in pre-COVID-19 period (3 January-20 February 2020) (60%). A 43% reduction in STEMI admissions was observed during the COVID-19 outbreak compared with the previous period. Time from symptom onset to first medical contact (FMC) and time from FMC to primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) were longer in patients admitted during the COVID-19 period compared with before [148 (79-781) versus 130 (30-185) min; P = 0.018, and 75 (59-148)] versus 45 (30-70) min; P < 0.001]. High-sensitive troponin T levels on admission were also higher. In-hospital mortality was 12% in the COVID-19 phase versus 6% in the pre-COVID-19 period. Incidence of the composite end-point, including free-wall rupture, severe left ventricular dysfunction, left ventricular aneurysm, severe mitral regurgitation and pericardial effusion, was higher during the COVID-19 than the pre-COVID-19 period (19.6 versus 41.2%; P = 0.030; odds ratio = 2.87; 95% confidence interval 1.09-7.58).ConclusionThe COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the STEMI care system reducing hospital admissions and prolonging revascularization time. This translated into a worse patient prognosis due to more STEMI complications.

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