Prognostic value of the exercise test in patients with ischemic heart disease

The objective of this study is to determine the prognostic value of stress testing in patients with coronary heart disease. We examined 95 cases followed during an average period of 33 months. The age was 52 +/- 9 years. All patients had clinical evidence of myocardial ischemia: 78 had previous myocardial infarction, 11 stable angor pectoris and six unstable angina. After the initial event 33 patients were asymptomatic and 62 with mild angina. During follow-up; 42 patients had no coronary events; 10 died, six developed non-fatal myocardial infarction and 37 had more angina, nine of these patients were treated with bypass coronary artery surgery. The annual mortality was 3.8%, all with previous myocardial infarction. In the stress testing the patients who died were distinguished by limited exercise ability and severe changes of ST-T segment. Patients with greater than or equal to 0.2 mV ST-T segment depth or effort duration less than or equal to 3 minutes had an annual mortality F 7% 13.6% respectively.