Acute coronary syndrome diagnosis at hospital discharge: How often do we get it right in the emergency department?

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) encompasses unstable angina (UA), non-ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) and ST segment myocardial infarction (STEMI). In 2007-2008 in Australia, there were 95 000 hospitalisations for ACS. There is limited data about the level of agreement between the ED and hospital discharge diagnosis. The objective of the present study is to describe the proportion of ED patients with a concordant ACS hospital discharge diagnosis and determine factors associated with this. METHODS: The present study was a retrospective case series of consecutive presentations of patients with ACS to the EDs of Southern Health, Victoria, Australia, during a 6 month period ..