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Aim We investigated temporal trends in major cardiovascular events following first-time myocardial infarction (MI) and trends in revascularization and pharmacotherapy from 2000 to 2017. Methods and results Using nationwide registries, we identified 120 833 Danish patients with a first-time MI between 2000 and 2017. We investigated 30-day and 1-year mortality and the 1-year risk of first-time admission for heart failure (HF) and recurrent MI. Patients were younger with a higher prevalence of hypertension and diabetes in 2015-2017 compared with 2000-2002. The patients were predominantly male (65.6%), and the median age declined by 3 years through the periods. Percutaneous coronary interventions within 7 days after first-time MI increased significantly (2000: 11.4% vs. 2017: 68.6%; P-trend < 0.001). Cardiovascular medication after first-time MI changed significantly in the same period. Absolute risks and adjusted rates of outcomes were significantly lower in 2015-2017 compared with 2000-2002: 30-day mortality: 6.5% vs. 14.1% [hazard ratio (HR) 0.52, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.48-0.55); 1-year mortality 10.7% vs. 21.8% (HR 0.52, 95% CI: 0.50-0.55); recurrent MI: 4.0% vs. 7.8% (HR 0.56, 95% CI: 0.51-0.62); and first-time admission for HF: 2.9% vs. 3.7% (HR 0.82, 95% CI: 0.73-0.92). The rates of 30-day/1-year mortality and recurrent MI showed significantly decreasing trends (P-trend < 0.001). The rates of first-time admission for HF were borderline significant (P-trend = 0.045). Conclusion From 2000 to 2017, we observed a decreasing risk of recurrent MI, first-time admission for HF, and all-cause mortality in patients with a first-time MI. In the same period, we observed a high rate of guideline-recommended pharmacological treatment after first-time MI as well as increasing rate of early revascularization in Denmark. Translational perspectives The results from the current study portrait the risk of all-cause mortality, recurrent MI, and first-time admission

BACKGROUND: More than half of all sudden cardiac deaths (SCDs) are unwitnessed, but the composition of the unwitnessed SCD population is poorly described.OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to compare clinical and autopsy characteristics of young unwitnessed SCD subjects, based on the time from last contact to being found dead.METHODS: All unwitnessed SCD subjects aged 1-35 years in Denmark from 2000-2014 identified through a multisource approach were included. Time from last seen alive to being found dead was dichotomized to <1 hour or 1-24 hours. Clinical characteristics and autopsy results were compared, and predictors of autopsy were assessed by logistic regression.RESULTS: Of 440 unwitnessed SCD subjects, 366 (83%) had not been seen alive within 1 hour of being found dead. Comorbidities differed between the groups, with more epilepsy (17% vs 5%) and psychiatric diseases (13% vs 7%) in the 24-hour group. Patients in the 24-hour group died more frequently during sleep (64% vs 23%), the autopsy rate was higher (75% vs 61%), and deaths were more often unexplained after autopsy (69% vs 53%). Having been seen within 1 hour of death independently decreased the chance of being autopsied (odds ratio 0.51; 95% confidence interval 0.27-1.00; P = .0497).CONCLUSION: The majority of unwitnessed SCD subjects had not been seen alive within 1 hour of being found dead. Clinical- and autopsy-related characteristics differed between the 2 groups. Differences were mainly attributable to death-related circumstances and comorbidities. Excluding SCD cases not seen alive within 1 hour of being found dead would severely underestimate the burden of SCD.

Objectives: The DANHEART trial is a multicenter, randomized (1:1), parallel-group, double-blind, placebo-controlled study in chronic heart failure patients with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF). This investigator driven study will include 1500 HFrEF patients and test in a 2 × 2 factorial design: 1) if hydralazine-isosorbide dinitrate reduces the incidence of death and hospitalization with worsening heart failure vs. placebo (H-HeFT) and 2) if metformin reduces the incidence of death, worsening heart failure, acute myocardial infarction, and stroke vs. placebo in patients with diabetes or prediabetes (Met-HeFT). Methods: Symptomatic, optimally treated HFrEF patients with LVEF ≤40% are randomized to active vs. placebo treatment. Patients can be randomized in either both H-HeFT and Met-HeFT or to only one of these study arms. In this event-driven study, it is anticipated that 1300 patients should be included in H-HeFT and 1100 in Met-HeFT and followed for an average of 4 years. Results: As of May 2020, 296 patients have been randomized at 20 centers in Denmark. Conclusion: The H-HeFT and Met-HeFT studies will yield new knowledge about the potential benefit and safety of 2 commonly prescribed drugs with limited randomized data in patients with HFrEF.

Importance: Emergency medical dispatchers fail to identify approximately 25% of cases of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA), resulting in lost opportunities to save lives by initiating cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Objective: To examine how a machine learning model trained to identify OHCA and alert dispatchers during emergency calls affected OHCA recognition and response. Design, Setting, and Participants: This double-masked, 2-group, randomized clinical trial analyzed all calls to emergency number 112 (equivalent to 911) in Denmark. Calls were processed by a machine learning model using speech recognition software. The machine learning model assessed ongoing calls, and calls in which the model identified OHCA were randomized. The trial was performed at Copenhagen Emergency Medical Services, Denmark, between September 1, 2018, and December 31, 2019. Intervention: Dispatchers in the intervention group were alerted when the machine learning model identified out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, and those in the control group followed normal protocols without alert. Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary end point was the rate of dispatcher recognition of subsequently confirmed OHCA. Results: A total of 169 049 emergency calls were examined, of which the machine learning model identified 5242 as suspected OHCA. Calls were randomized to control (2661 [50.8%]) or intervention (2581 [49.2%]) groups. Of these, 336 (12.6%) and 318 (12.3%), respectively, had confirmed OHCA. The mean (SD) age among of these 654 patients was 70 (16.1) years, and 419 of 627 patients (67.8%) with known gender were men. Dispatchers in the intervention group recognized 296 confirmed OHCA cases (93.1%) with machine learning assistance compared with 304 confirmed OHCA cases (90.5%) using standard protocols without machine learning assistance (P = .15). Machine learning alerts alone had a significantly higher sensitivity than dispatchers without alerts for confirmed OHCA (85.0% vs 77.5%; P < .0

BACKGROUND: Despite progress in management of patients with heart failure (HF) these patients still have a poor prognosis. We tested the hypothesis whether the inflammatory biomarker YKL-40 alone or in combination with high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and/or N-terminal-pro-B natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) could be a new prognostic biomarker for all-cause mortality in patients with HF. METHODS AND RESULTS: A total of 717 of the 1000 patients with severe left ventricular systolic dysfunction included in the EchoCardiography and Heart Outcome Study were included in Denmark and had blood sample available for serum YKL-40 determination. Mean age of patients was 70 years, and 73% were male. During the 7 years follow-up period 458 patients died. Patients were categorised according to serum YKL-40 at entry into four quartiles: quartile I with median serum YKL-40=60µg/L (5-95% Confidence interval (CI): 30-82), quartile II: YKL-40=107µg/L (CI: 86-132), quartile III: YKL-40=169µg/L (CI: 142-221), and quartile IV: YKL-40=286µg/L (CI: 230-770). Hazard ratios for all-cause mortality were with quartile I as reference 1.33 (CI: 0.99-1.80), 1.35 (CI: 0.99-1.82), and 1.54 (CI: 1.14-2.08) for serum YKL-40 II to IV quartiles, respectively following multivariable adjustment for cardiovascular risk factors (age, left ventricular ejection fraction, gender, history of heart failure, ischemic heart disease, chronic pulmonary disease, diabetes mellitus, stroke, hypertension, NT-proBNP, hs-CRP, and renal function). CONCLUSION: Serum YKL-40 is significantly associated with all-cause mortality in patients with HF and could potentially be a new prognostic biomarker in these patients.