Study of the correlation between the Type A behavior pattern in patients with coronary heart disease and the extent of coronary atherosclerosis.

To investigate the relationship between the coronary-prone behavior pattern (Type A behavior pattern) and coronary artery disease, 159 patients were evaluated by coronary angiography (CAG) and the coronary-prone behavior pattern score (CBP score) as well as other coronary risk factors (CRFs). The extent of atherosclerosis was quantified by the number of diseased major arteries and by a coronary atherosclerosis score (CAS) based on an original, quantitative scoring system. Age, obesity index, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, total cholesterol and CBP score were significantly higher and HDL cholesterol was significantly lower in the multivessel disease group than in the other group. Age, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol and CBP score were correlated significantly with CAS. On the other hand, there was no significant correlation between these CRFs and the CBP score. These results strongly suggest that the behavior pattern might be an independent CRFs via the promotion of coronary atherosclerosis.