[Effect of delayed application for medical help on the clinical course of myocardial infarction].
This questionnaire study included 203 patients with myocardial infarction (48 men and 24 women at the initial stages of the disease, 50 men and 81 women with a history of coronary heart disease) treated at the city clinical hospital No 50. Data from their medical cards and emergency call records were analyzed for the elucidation of factors influencing timely application for the first aid, the process of hospital treatment, and its final outcome. It was shown that the main cause of late hospitalization is the patients' unawareness of the danger of major clinical symptoms and of the necessity to call an ambulance for their management. Most patients rely on spontaneous recovery in case of moderate pain; those suffering severe pain either try to cope with the diseases by themselves or look for a doctor among their acquaintances. Patients underestimating the risk of further deterioration turn to pressing domesticities instead of seeking medical aid immediately, others are reluctant to stay in a hospital or go through emotional experience associated with hospitalization. Late application for the first aid accounts for the enhanced frequency of complications after discharge from the hospital despite adequate inpatient treatment.
Bulakhova
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D000368:Aged; D018450:Disease Progression; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors