title: Ventricular fibrillation in acute myocardial infarction before and during primary PCI.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  There are scarce and sometimes contradictory data about ventricular fibrillation (VF) during the acute phase of MI. In-hospital VF most often occurs with inferior MI, when treated with fibrinolytics. Out-of-hospital VF seems to be associated with anterior MI. We studied characteristics of patients with VF during reperfusion therapy by primary angioplasty (PCI) versus patients with VF before PCI.
  
  
  METHODS
  From January 1995 until December 2001, we treated 2826 patients for acute MI and reviewed clinical records of all patients who developed VF and classified the patients according to the first episode of VF: either before or during the angioplasty procedure.
  
  
  RESULTS
  VF developed in 219 (8%) patients. Patients with VF during reperfusion therapy (n=74, 3%) were older (p=0.03), more frequently female (0.04), less often had heart failure (p=0.04), when compared with patient with VF before PCI (n=145, 5%). Patients with VF during PCI experienced more often preinfarction angina (p=0.009) and suffered more often from inferior MI (p=0.001), when compared with patients with VF before PCI.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patients with early VF before reperfusion have different characteristics when compared with patients with VF during reperfusion. Infarct location is a major determinant of timing of VF, when both groups are compared (p<0.001).
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Isala Klinieken, locatie Weezenlanden, Groot Wezenland 20, 8011 JW Zwolle, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Jose P S
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Henriques
authors.forename: Peter J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Gheeraert
authors.forename: Jan Paul
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Ottervanger
authors.forename: Menko-Jan
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: de Boer
authors.forename: Jan-Henk E
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Dambrink
authors.forename: A T Marcel
authors.initials: AT
authors.lastname: Gosselink
authors.forename: Arnoud W J
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: van 't Hof
authors.forename: Jan C A
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Hoorntje
authors.forename: Harry
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Suryapranata
authors.forename: Felix
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Zijlstra
mesh_terms: D015906:Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000150:complications* / Q000628:therapy*; D014693:Ventricular Fibrillation / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*