Although there are many books on ischemic heart disease and myocardial in farction, very few relate to the acute phase of the illness. Pre-hospital coronary care units have been operational for over a decade. In 1975 the first book detailing the operation and results of the out-of-hospital Belfast Mobile Coronary Care Unit was published (The Acute Coronary Attack - Pitman Medical). Nevertheless, deaths due to coronary artery disease still remain a major challenge in contemporary society. Sudden death is largely an out-of-hospital problem. Since ventricular fibril lation is an electrical...