title: A large-scale prospective cohort study on the current status of therapeutic modalities for acute myocardial infarction in Japan: rationale and initial results of the HIJAMI Registry.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  In Western countries, several multicenter collaborative studies on acute myocardial infarction (AMI) have provided much information about this disease. In Japan, on the other hand, there have been few cohort studies in which a sufficient number of Japanese patients with AMI were registered during a short period. This fact explains the absence of a database from which strategies for treating Japanese patients with AMI could be established. The purpose of this study was to build a comprehensive database on Japanese patients with AMI to elucidate their characteristics.
  
  
  METHODS
  Between January 1999 and June 2001, we consecutively registered all patients with AMI who were admitted to 17 participating medical institutions, including The Heart Institute of Japan, Cardiology (HIJC), Tokyo Women's Medical University. A standardized case report form was used to register all the patients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 3,021 consecutive patients was registered (2,136 men, 70.7%; 885 women, 29.3%) with a median age of 69 years [59, 77]. Among the patients, there were 851 elderly individuals (28.2%) > or = 76 years and 1102 patients with diabetes (36.5%). On index electrocardiogram, ST-elevation myocardial infarction was observed in 2,392 patients (79.2%). Within 24 hours after the onset of AMI, coronary angiography was conducted for 2,177 patients (72.1%). Primary percutaneous coronary intervention and coronary thrombolysis were conducted for 1,755 (58.1%) and 491 patients (16.3%), respectively, and percutaneous coronary intervention or coronary artery bypass grafting was additionally carried out in 303 patients. By the time of discharge, coronary angiography and coronary artery bypass grafting were performed in 2,659 (88.0%) and 137 patients (4.5%), respectively. During initial hospitalization, 285 patients died and the overall inhospital mortality rate was 9.4%. During hospitalization, cardiogenic shock and cardiac rupture were observed in 6.1% and 2.8% of the patients, respectively. The inhospital mortality rate is still high in patients with AMI with such mechanical complications and in elderly patients.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In our prospective cohort, we showed that Japanese patients with AMI could be characterized as (1) having a disease severity comparable with values observed in Western populations and (2) receiving early reperfusion therapy by PCI, which was used widely and safely, but nevertheless (3) exhibiting a high inhospital mortality rate. Our data indicate that further improvements in therapy for AMI in elderly patients and for AMI with mechanical complications are essential in Japan.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, The Heart Institute of Japan, Tokyo Women's Medical University, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kasanuki
authors.forename: Takashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Honda
authors.forename: Kazuo
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Haze
authors.forename: Tetsuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sumiyoshi
authors.forename: Toshinobu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Horie
authors.forename: Masahiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yagi
authors.forename: Jun-ichi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Yamaguchi
authors.forename: Yasuhiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ishii
authors.forename: Shin-ya
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Fujii
authors.forename: Michitaka
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nagashima
authors.forename: Hisayuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Okada
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Koganei
authors.forename: Ryo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Koyanagi
authors.forename: Yukio
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tsurumi
authors.forename: Hirotaka
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kimura
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ogawa
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D015906:Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary / Q000009:adverse effects; D015331:Cohort Studies; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass / Q000009:adverse effects; D005260:Female; D017052:Hospital Mortality; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000401:mortality / Q000628:therapy*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012042:Registries; D012720:Severity of Illness Index