Background:

Patients with acute myocardial infarction often have long decision times before seeking medical care. The decision time is influenced by knowledge of AMI-symptoms, psychological factors and the response of people near the patient to the symptoms.

Aim:

To investigate and compare the knowledge of AMI, intended actions in response to AMI-symptoms and attitudes toward seeking medical care of patients and the general public.

Method:

This was a multicentre study with descriptive and comparative design, using questionnaires as an instrument. The population consisted of AMI-patients and representatives of the general public.

Results:

There was good knowledge about typical AMI-symptoms among the participants. The majority thought an AMI always starts suddenly. Patients did not know more about the time-dependency of treatment outcome than the general public. A greater proportion of the general public would contact an additional person before consulting medical professionals.

Conclusions:

Patients had no better knowledge about AMI than the general public, but would more commonly act appropriately in case of AMI-symptoms.