Influence of Geographical Location on Access to Reperfusion Therapies and Mortality of Patients with STEMI in Sergipe: VICTIM Register

Abstract Background The concentration of high-complexity services in Aracaju, Sergipe can impose certain disparity in the quality of care for the patients with ST-segment elevation acute myocardial infarction (STEMI) (STEMI) who receive care from Brazil’s Unified Health System (SUS, acronym in Portuguese) and whose symptoms started in other health regions of the state. Objective To evaluate disparities in access to reperfusion therapies and 30-day mortality, among patients with STEMI, who were users of SUS, in each of the 7 health regions of Sergipe. Methods A total of 844 patients with STEMI in the period from 2014 to 2018, assisted by the only hospital with the capacity to offer primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) to SUS users in the state of Sergipe, were evaluated. The patients were divided into 7 groups according to the location at the onset of symptoms, following the existing division of health regions in the state. For comparison between groups, a significant difference was considered when p