Coronary Artery Calcium Score Predicts Major Adverse Cardiovascular Events in Stable Chest Pain

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articleResearchpeer-review

  • Federico Biavati
  • Luca Saba
  • Melinda Boussoussou
  • Theodora Benedek
  • Patrick Donnelly
  • José Rodríguez-Palomares
  • Andrejs Erglis
  • Cyril Štěchovský
  • Gintarė Šakalytė
  • Nada Čemerlić Ađić
  • Matthias Gutberlet
  • Jonathan D. Dodd
  • Ignacio Diez
  • Gershan Davis
  • Elke Zimmermann
  • Cezary Kępka
  • Radosav Vidakovic
  • Marco Francone
  • Małgorzata Ilnicka-Suckiel
  • Fabian Plank
  • Juhani Knuuti
  • Rita Faria
  • Stephen Schröder
  • Colin Berry
  • Balazs Ruzsics
  • Nina Rieckmann
  • Christine Kubiak
  • Kristian Schultz Hansen
  • Jacqueline Müller-Nordhorn
  • Pál Maurovich-Horvat
  • Per E. Sigvardsen
  • Imre Benedek
  • Clare Orr
  • Filipa Xavier Valente
  • Ligita Zvaigzne
  • Vojtěch Suchánek
  • Antanas Jankauskas
  • Filip Ađić
  • Michael Woinke
  • Diarmaid Cadogan
  • Iñigo Lecumberri
  • Erica Thwaite
  • Mariusz Kruk
  • Aleksandar N. Neskovic
  • Massimo Mancone
  • Donata Kuśmierz
  • Gudrun Feuchtner
  • Mikko Pietilä
  • Vasco Gama Ribeiro
  • Tanja Drosch
  • Christian Delles
  • Riccardo Cau
  • Michael Fisher
  • Bela Merkely
  • Charlotte Kragelund
  • Rosca Aurelian
  • Stephanie Kelly
  • Bruno García del Blanco
  • Ainhoa Rubio
  • Bálint Szilveszter
  • Ioana Rodean
  • Susan Regan
  • Hug Cuéllar Calabria
  • István Ferenc Édes
  • Linnea Larsen
  • Roxana Hodas
  • Adriane E. Napp
  • Robert Haase
  • Sarah Feger
  • Mahmoud Mohamed
  • Lina M. Serna-Higuita
  • Konrad Neumann
  • Henryk Dreger
  • Matthias Rief
  • Viktoria Wieske
  • Matthew J. Budoff
  • Melanie Estrella
  • Peter Martus
  • Maria Bosserdt
  • Marc Dewey

Background: Coronary artery calcium (CAC) has prognostic value for major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) in asymptomatic individuals, whereas its role in symptomatic patients is less clear. Purpose: To assess the prognostic value of CAC scoring for MACE in participants with stable chest pain initially referred for invasive coronary angiography (ICA). Materials and Methods: This prespecified subgroup analysis from the Diagnostic Imaging Strategies for Patients With Stable Chest Pain and Intermediate Risk of Coronary Artery Disease (DISCHARGE) trial, conducted between October 2015 and April 2019 across 26 centers in 16 countries, focused on adult patients with stable chest pain referred for ICA. Participants were randomly assigned to undergo either ICA or coronary CT. CAC scores from noncontrast CT scans were categorized into low, intermediate, and high groups based on scores of 0, 1-399, and 400 or higher, respectively. The end point of the study was the occurrence of MACE (myocardial infarction, stroke, and cardiovascular death) over a median 3.5-year follow-up, analyzed using Cox proportional hazard regression tests. Results: The study involved 1749 participants (mean age, 60 years ± 10 [SD]; 992 female). The prevalence of obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD) at CT angiography rose from 4.1% (95% CI: 2.8, 5.8) in the CAC score 0 group to 76.1% (95% CI: 70.3, 81.2) in the CAC score 400 or higher group. Revascularization rates increased from 1.7% to 46.2% across the same groups (P < .001). The CAC score 0 group had a lower MACE risk (0.5%; HR, 0.08 [95% CI: 0.02, 0.30]; P < .001), as did the 1-399 CAC score group (1.9%; HR, 0.27 [95% CI: 0.13, 0.59]; P = .001), compared with the 400 or higher CAC score group (6.8%). No significant difference in MACE between sexes was observed (P = .68). Conclusion: In participants with stable chest pain initially referred for ICA, a CAC score of 0 showed very low risk of MACE, and higher CAC scores showed increasing risk of obstructive CAD, revascularization, and MACE at follow-up.

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere231557
JournalRadiology
Volume310
Issue number3
Number of pages11
ISSN0033-8419
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2024

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