Predictors of cardiac symptom attribution among AMI patients.

Background: Care-seeking delay represents a major cause of death and disability for cardiac patients. With more than 70,000 new and recurrent acute myocardial infarctions (AMI) in Canada each year, recognizing symptoms as heart-related and seeking prompt medical care is essential for increasing the likelihood of successful treatment and survival. However, little is known about the factors associated with whether or not individuals attribute their symptoms to the heart (i.e., adopt a cardiac symptom attribution).

Purpose and design: Secondary analyses were conducted on data from a sample of 135 patients from four North American hospitals to identify the predictors of correct symptom attribution (CSA) during AMI.

Results and conclusions: Logistic regression investigations revealed that patients with a prior diagnosis of coronary heart disease and patients whose AMI experience paralleled their pre-existing symptom expectations were associated with greater odds of adopting a CSA. Results suggest that patient education and a clearer understanding of patients' beliefs about AMI can help nurses in acute care and community settings identify and manage misconceptions that may interfere with correctly attributing symptoms to a cardiac cause.