The dichotomy of myocardial and cerebral infarction.

The Mayo Clinic medical record linkage and indexing system was used to examine changes in incidence and case fatality of myocardial infarction (MI), sudden unexpected death (SUD), and cerebral infarction (CI). The average annual age and sex adjusted incidence rates for MI (including SUD) and CI declined by 14% and 55%, respectively, between 1950-54 and 1975-79. The decline in the incidence of MI was due to a reduction in sudden unexpected death (SUD), greatest in younger persons. 30-day case fatality after MI declined from 50% to 35% during this period.