Article

Exercise capacity has important diagnostic and prognostic implications in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). In order to assess the determinants of exercise tolerance, we studied 117 symptomatic patients with CAD (> 50% diameter narrowing of one or more coronary arteries) who underwent rest and exercise radionuclide ventriculography on a cycle ergometer. The exercise end points were angina pectoris in 37 patients and volitional dyspnea or fatigue in 80 patients. According to exercise capacity, 62 patients exercised for no more than seven minutes (group 1) and 55 patients exercised for more than seven minutes (group 2). Patients in group 1 were older than patients in group 2 (57 +/- 10 years vs 53 +/- 9 years, P = .006). In addition, there were more women in group 1 than in group 2 (18% vs 2%, P = .01). Stepwise discriminant analysis of clinical, exercise electrocardiographic, and radionuclide angiographic variables revealed that age (F = 8.7), sex (F = 8.4), and CAD score (F = 7.6) were significantly related to exercise duration. When patients with angina during exercise were excluded, only two variables were related to exercise duration, age (F= 8.1) and sex (F = 6.9). When only men less than 60 years of age were analyzed, the exercise ejection fraction was the variable that best predicted exercise duration (F = 5.7). Thus, exercise capacity in patients with CAD is related to age, gender and extent of CAD. However among patients who do not experience angina pectoris during exercise the extent of CAD is not related to exercise capacity.

Langue : ANGLAIS

Identifiant basis : 1985002926