[Prodromal symptoms of acute myocardial infarction (author's transl)]

75 out of 100 patients who had survived myocardial infarction, had had prodromal symptoms. 62 patients reported specific prodromi such as first manifestations of angina pectoris or increase in duration and intensity of angina pectoris which had existed for some time previously, and in some cases had been accompanied by general complaints. A further 13 patients had only general symptoms such as onset of dyspnoea, palpitations, or a drop in performance during the 3 months prior to the infarct. The primary manifestation of symptoms consisted of exercise-induced angina pectoris at the beginning of the defined prodromal period in most cases, whereas later in the course manifestations occurred in the form of exercise-independent and spontaneous angina pectoris. In 9 patients symptomatology changed and exercise-induced angina transformed either into spontaneous angina pectoris or permanent pectanginous pain. In 8 of these 9 patients infarction occurred within less than a week after the change of symptoms. Prodromi occurred with approximately the same frequency in anterior and posterior wall infarction. The same applied to the distribution between transmural and non-transmural infarction.