Atrial fibrillation in acute myocardial infarction.

Atrial fibrillation (AF) complicating acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Early intervention with antiarrhythmic treatment and hemodynamic support in patients prone to develop AF may modify their course. The purpose of this study was to characterize on admission the patients with AMI who are prone to develop AF. The admission data of 45 consecutive patients who developed AF during the course of AMI, and the data of a control group of 45 consecutive patients with AMI who did not develop AF, were analyzed using logistic regression. The following characteristics of patients who developed AF were identified: old age, history of heart failure prior to admission, low systolic blood pressure on admission, wide P waves, presence of left bundle branch block or left anterior hemiblock, marked ST segment elevation, and PQ segment depression (admission ECG). The logistic regression formula correctly classified 80 of the 90 patients (89%) to their actual group. The study showed that the relative risk of a patient with AMI to develop AF can be estimated on admission from simple, readily available, clinical data.