[Epidemiology of myocardial infarction from the obductor's view]

Fibroses of the myocardium are more frequent in both sexes than acute infarctions. Men and women with microinfarctions or fibroses of the myocardium reach an older age than patients with a macroinfarction. Fresh necroses after infarction (as primary infarction or reinfarction) are less frequent in men than old scars after macroinfarctions, but not in women. With 20-30% the number of the quiescent myocardial infarctions is larger than generally is assumed. Men as well as women with old scars after infarction or with old aneurysms of the cardiac wall do not reach an older age than those with a fresh necrosis after infarction. This is explained by the fact that the chance of survival and also the further life expectancy are more favourable for younger patients with infarction than for older ones.