Comparison of Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction Between ST-Elevation and Non-ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction Patients

Background: Left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) is an important echocardiographic index of left ventricular systolic function and prognosis after acute myocardial infarction (AMI). This study compared the distribution of LVEF between patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI). Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study included 100 patients with AMI admitted to the Department of Cardiology, Shaheed Ziaur Rahman Medical College Hospital, Bogra, Bangladesh, from April to September 2013. Fifty patients had STEMI and 50 had NSTEMI. Patients were selected according to predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria and underwent clinical evaluation, relevant investigations and echocardiography. Results: The mean age of the study population was 54 ± 12.5 years; 76% were male. In the STEMI group, LVEF was ≤30% in 5 (10%), 31–45% in 13 (26%), 46–60% in 20 (40%), and ≥60% in 12 (24%) patients. Corresponding values in NSTEMI were 3 (6%), 7 (14%), 23 (46%), and 17 (34%), respectively. Thus, reduced LVEF categories were descriptively more frequent in STEMI, whereas preserved/high LVEF was more frequent in NSTEMI. The dissertation concluded that lower EF was more prevalent in STEMI; however, an exact inferential p-value for the four-category LVEF comparison was not reported in the source table. Conclusion: STEMI patients showed a less favorable LVEF distribution than NSTEMI patients in this hospital-based sample. Echocardiographic assessment of LVEF after AMI may help identify patients requiring closer risk assessment and follow-up.