Clinical outcomes in patients with stable coronary artery disease with vs. without a history of myocardial revascularization

AIMS: The aim was to describe outcomes among patients with stable coronary artery disease (CAD) with or without a history of myocardial revascularization in a large contemporary cohort. METHODS AND RESULTS: Patients with stable CAD were selected from the Reduction of Atherothrombosis for Continued Health (REACH) registry. The cohort was divided into patients with ( n = 25 583) and without ( n = 13 133) a history of myocardial revascularization. Crude outcomes were described according to the use and type of revascularization: percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) or coronary artery bypass surgery (CABG). The primary outcome was cardiovascular (CV) death. At baseline, the non-revascularized group was older and had more CV risk factors. At 36-month median follow-up, previous revascularization was associated with a lower risk of CV death crude incidence rate (CIR): 6.82 vs. 9.08%, hazard ratio (HR) 0.73 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.66-0.80; P < 0.01]. This association was seen for patients with a history of PCI (CIR 5.78 vs. 8.88%, HR 0.64 0.58-0.71; P ≤ 0.01), but not with CABG (HR 1.26 1.14-1.49; P < 0.01), and was consistent regardless of prior MI and the timing of prior revascularization. CONCLUSION: Among patients with stable CAD, a history of myocardial revascularization was associated with lower CV mortality, particularly when PCI was the mode of revascularization. Coronary artery disease patients managed non-invasively represent a high-risk group.