Serum ferritin and myocardial infarct.

In a recent Finnish study, an association of high serum ferritin levels with excess risk of myocardial infarction in men was reported. This was the first such report in the literature so we decided to review the clinical records of 298 male patient seen over a 10-year period in Southern West Virginia, in whom serum ferritin levels were obtained. Of the 32 patients who experienced an acute myocardial infarction, there were no significant statistical differences between their mean ferritin levels and the ferritin levels of the 266 patients with no myocardial infarct. Only two of the 32 patients with myocardial infarct showed an elevated serum ferritin level, so our findings do not support the hypothesis that high serum ferritin levels are associated with myocardial infarct.