Incidence of acute myocardial infarction in Takashima, Shiga, Japan.

BACKGROUND The incidence and mortality from ischemic heart disease (IHD) in Japan seem to be among the lowest of all the industrialized countries, but there are few reliable registers of acute myocardial infarction (AMI). METHODS AND RESULTS To assess the incidence of AMI in Takashima County, Shiga, Japan, from 1988 to 1998 and compare the data with similar registers in the world, cases of AMI or sudden death presumed from myocardial ischemia were registered. The criteria of AMI were based on the WHO MONICA Projects. The medical records of all the hospitals inside as well as outside the county, the original death records in the health center, and the ambulance records in the county were investigated and 291 cases were registered (190 males, 101 females; average age (mean +/- SD), 69.5+/-12.2). The 28-day and 24-h case fatality was 38.1% and 33.0%, respectively. Age-adjusted annual incidence of AMI per 100,000 population aged between 25 and 74 years were 58.2 for men and 18.0 for women. The incidence of AMI showed a constant trend from 1988 to 1998. CONCLUSION The results confirmed that Japan has the lowest incidence of AMI among the industrialized countries.