Abstract

Background: There is no recent information on the incidence of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in Chile. Aim: To describe and evaluate the temporal incidence trend of AMI in Chile between 2008 and 2016. Material and Methods: A time series study. We included all AMI cases (ICD10 = 121) that were registered in Chile between 2008 and 2016 in the national hospital discharge and death databases. Rates were stratified according to sex and age group. We calculated crude and standardized rates (direct method). Time trends were evaluated using Prais-Winsten (PW) regression models. Results: There were 132,784 cases of AMI. The mean age of cases was 67 +/- 14 years, 67% were men. Crude and standardized rates were 84.4 and 73.1 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, respectively. Standardized incidence increased in total population and women, whose PW coefficients were 0.43 (0.01-0.82; p = 0.045) and 0.26 (0.005-0.47; p = 0.02), respectively. Regarding age, an upward trend was observed in the younger age groups, whose coefficients were 0.20 (0.08 - 0.31; p = 0.004) for cases < 45 years, 1.31 (0.81-1.81; p < 0.01) for cases between 45 and 54 years, and 2.68 (1.31 - 4.04; p = 0.002) for cases between 55 and 64 years. Conclusions: An increase in the number of cases with AMI was observed, especially in younger age groups. This estimation could be useful for planning and evaluating public policies.