[Cardiac amyloidosis : a rare disease ?].

Cardiac amyloidosis is an infiltrative cardiomyopathy, typically conducting to heart failure with preserved ejection fraction. There are several causes for the disease, from which two can already be seen in the young patient and are due to either genetic mutation or neoplasia. A third, non genetic cause, typically affects older patients (previously called senile amyloidosis) and appears to be much more prevalent than initially reported.

Prehospital emergency physician activation of interventional cardiology team reduces door-to-balloon time in ST-elevation myocardial infarction.

Question Under Study: To explore whether early activation of an interventional cardiology team, by prehospital emergency physicians, reduces door-to-balloon time (DTBT) in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) diagnosed with prehospital ECG.

Design: before-after comparison.

Setting: emergency department (ED) of an urban teaching hospital with a catheterisation laboratory open continuously.