Journal of clinical epidemiology
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Over an 11-year period, autopsies were performed on 957 of 1038 nontraumatic deaths in the Emergency Department of the Central Hospital in Ferrara, Italy. Of these 957 cases, 732 (76.5%) met criteria for sudden death. In 100 (14%) of these cases, the death could be attributed to pulmonary embolism (55 cases), stroke (17), or rupture of aortic aneurysm (28). ⋯ We conclude that acute myocardial infarction accounts for the majority of cases of nontraumatic sudden death in our Emergency Department. Altogether, 84% of these patients had severe coronary artery disease. In approximately one-third of cases for whom no immediate cause of sudden death could be determined, all had evidence of heart disease, and about two-thirds had severe coronary artery disease.