[Perioperative cardiac infarction - an underdiagnosed problem].

Perioperative cardiac infarction (PMI) associated with surgery and the postoperative period significantly restricts the outcome of operative treatment. PMI is encountered in 0.5 to 1% of surgical patients, but among high-risk patients the incidence exceeds 10%. The disorder is associated with a mortality of 10 to 25%, corresponding to at least 1 000 patient deaths annually, as adjusted to the numbers of operative treatment in Finland, and its care requires at least 20000 extra days of hospitalization.