Risk profiling the patient after acute myocardial infarction

Patients surviving acute myocardial infarction form a large, heterogeneous group at risk for few or many varied complications with widely varied prognoses. By examining fundamental aspects of cardiac function such as left ventricular function, electrical instability, and residual ischemia as well as comorbid factors such as diabetes, a patient's risk for subsequent morbidity and mortality may be predicted. It is hoped that by identifying patients at increased risk, one may be able to alter the natural history of their disease.