Evaluation of age and sex dependent criteria for ST elevation myocardial infarction

An evaluation of the Glasgow ECG analysis program criteria for acute ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) was undertaken using two Board Certified cardiologists as the reference. Out of a data base of 1220 patients presenting with chest pain, 248 cases of confirmed MI were available for evaluation and 52 control cases were added from the remainder. The age and sex based Glasgow criteria were also assessed against existing ESC/ACC criteria. Irrespective of whichever way the criteria were evaluated, the Glasgow age and sex based criteria proved to have a superior performance compared to the non age and sex based criteria. The overall sensitivity of the Glasgow criteria was 89% in a set of 219 patients with an MI, of whom 113 had a cardiologist reported STEMI. Evaluation of specificity in this population is not meaningful. The corresponding ESC/ACC criteria evaluated by computer were 75% sensitive.