[Heart rupture in the course of acute transmural myocardial infarction]

The purpose of the work was an assessment of the incidence of heart rupture as the complication of acute transmural myocardial infarction, and establishing of risk factors. In a retrospective study, among 150 patients hospitalized in the department in the years 1982-1992 and dying in the course of acute transmural myocardial infarction, in whom postmortem examination was done, 19 cases complicated with heart rupture were found. The analysis was carried out on the basis of autopsy results and clinical documentation. The studied group included 12 women (63.2%) and 7 men (36.8%). Most frequently encountered were ruptures of the free wall of the left ventricle (n = 12). The risk factors are: age over 60 years, female sex, arterial hypertension, left ventricular hypertrophy and the first myocardial infarction without earlier coronary complaints.