Survival After First Myocardial Infarction in Patients With and Without Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

An estimated three million people are affected by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in the UK, giving it a prevalence of 1.5% of the population in 2007/08. COPD accounts for approximately 30,000 deaths each year in the UK and is an important co-morbidity in those dying from other smoking related diseases, most commonly ischaemic heart disease and lung cancer. The National COPD audit showed a very high level of co-morbidity, the association with cardiovascular disease being particularly strong with 51% of patients with cardiovascular disease having been admitted for COPD within the preceding 24 months. Patients with COPD are at increased risk of myocardial infarction compared to the general population. Although this increase in cardiovascular risk exists, it is not clear is whether survival after myocardial infarction is different in patients with and without COPD and what factors contribute to this survival difference. Differences in survival may arise due to differences in prescribing certain drugs such as beta-blockers, differences in prevalence of risk factors (e.g. current smoking status) or increased COPD events such as exacerbations which themselves are associated with increased mortality. The investigators primary aim is to investigate whether survival after first myocardial infarction is shorter in patients with COPD than those without COPD and to establish reasons for these differences in survival.