Antianginal medications and long-term outcomes after elective catheterization in patients with coronary artery disease

BackgroundAntianginal medications are a class I recommendation by the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association guidelines for stable ischemic heart disease. We sought to better understand guidance in drug selection and real-life outcomes of antianginal medication use. HypothesisIn patients with stable ischemic heart disease, antianginal medications lower mortality. MethodsWe evaluated 5608 patients with obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD) on elective cardiac catheterization with follow-up through self-administered questionnaires. Patients were classified as being prescribed a particular medication if they received that medication at index catheterization, or within 3 months postcatheterization. The association between antianginal medication use and outcomes was evaluated using Cox proportional hazards models. ResultsCompared with the 11% not prescribed any antianginal medication, patients prescribed antianginal medication were more likely to be older and female; have a history of hypertension, diabetes mellitus, peripheral vascular disease, or 3-vessel CAD; have lower adjusted mortality (hazard ratio [HR]: 0.75, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.63-0.89); and experience mortality or myocardial infarction (HR: 0.83, 95% CI: 0.71-0.98). Compared with patients not taking -blockers (17%), those taking -blockers had a lower risk of mortality (HR: 0.76, 95% CI: 0.66-0.88). Patients prescribed calcium channel blockers or long-acting nitrates had a higher risk of mortality compared with nonusers (HR: 1.16, 95% CI: 1.04-1.29; HR: 1.20, 95% CI: 1.08-1.34; respectively). ConclusionsAntianginal medications are not universally prescribed among obstructive CAD patients; nonuse was associated with higher mortality. For CAD patients with or without prior myocardial infarction, -blockers were associated with improved long-term survival.