Mechanical complications of myocardial infarction during COVID-19 pandemic: An Italian single-centre experience.
Emanuele Pilato, Giovanni Battista Pinna, Valentina Parisi and 2 others
PMID 32980627WHAT IT FOUND
Five patients developed cardiac rupture after delaying heart attack treatment to avoid catching SARS-CoV-2 in hospital.
One required emergency surgery and recovered; the others were managed without surgery.
Key findings
01Five patients had cardiac rupture caused by delayed revascularization because they stayed home to avoid SARS-CoV-2 contact.
02One 58-year-old woman with subacute left ventricular free wall rupture underwent urgent surgery and was discharged 6 days later.
03Only the detailed patient had surgery; all five patients were discharged in very good general state.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
It is a small case series from one centre, so it cannot show how common these complications are or which treatment works best. Only one patient is described in detail; the other four are summarised briefly. There is no comparison group, randomisation, or blinding, so the outcomes cannot be attributed to any specific treatment. The cases occurred during a pandemic lockdown, so the situation may not apply to ordinary care.
Declared interests
The authors declared no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that cardiac rupture after delayed heart attack care is common or that surgery is proven to improve outcomes. This is a small case series from one centre, with no comparison group, and only one patient is described in detail.