Coronary care in the elderly

Over a five-year period (1974-78), 2947 patients were admitted to the Coronary Care Unit, Victoria Infirmary, Glasgow, and it was confirmed that 1474 of these patients had had a myocardial infarction. Over 70% were of state pensionable age, that is women over the age of 60 years and men over 65 years. No difference was found in the incidence of successful resuscitation from primary ventricular fibrillation following acute myocardial infarction between the under-60-year-old and over-70-year-old age groups. Further, this study did not show any rise in mortality, with age, following acute myocardial infarction.