| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
British Medical Bulletin 59:45-53 (2001)
© 2001 Oxford University Press
Invasive investigations and revascularisation
Ischaemic heart disease
Department of Invasive Cardiology, Royal Brompton Hospital, London, UK
Invasive investigation of coronary artery disease is relatively expensive, and carries risks including a mortality of approximately 1 in 2000. It would not be practical or appropriate to perform invasive investigation in all patients with a clinical diagnosis of coronary artery disease, still less in the large numbers with chest pain and possible angina. Clinicians will refer for invasive investigation those: (i) with a high level of angina, needing revascularisation on symptomatic grounds; and (ii) who are likely to have a poor prognosis with medical treatment, and thus likely to benefit from revascularisation. Not all of these patients will have a high level of symptoms.