Registration of myocardial infarction and stroke in the Kilkenny Health Project: methodology.

A myocardial infarction and stroke register was established in January 1987 as part of the evaluation of the Kilkenny Health Project. This is a community programme which aims to reduce risk factors for coronary heart disease. The register records acute myocardial infarction and stroke in residents of County Kilkenny and of the reference county. This will provide accurate estimates of the incidence of these diseases and of trends over time. Methods used comply with the protocol in use by the WHO MONICA Project. This will allow comparison of the incidence of coronary heart disease and stroke in this register with that in other MONICA locations, including that in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Information is obtained from sources in hospitals and the community about relevant history, symptoms and investigations. Information about deaths is also obtained from these sources, and from coroners, death registers and the Central Statistics Office. Appropriate steps are taken to ensure confidentiality of the information. Each event satisfying the MONICA diagnostic criteria for myocardial infarction and stroke is coded in accordance with the MONICA protocol, categorised and registered.