Influence of a variant angina on the results of percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty.

Nineteen (86%) of 22 patients with variant angina and important coronary stenoses (greater than 60%) had successful percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty. The acute complications in two patients were not caused by coronary spasms but by dissection with disturbance of perfusion. One of these two patients required a coronary bypass graft; the other was treated conservatively. Myocardial infarction developed in both patients. Despite long term administration of nifedipine (30-80 mg daily), restenoses occurred within six months (on average after 10 weeks) in nine patients with symptoms and one without. In four patients the restenoses exceeded the degree of stenosis before angioplasty. Five patients were revascularised by surgical means. Vessels in three out of four patients were later successfully dilated. After a mean period of observation of 24 months (6-51 months) 18 of the 19 patients are symptom free and do not require medication. The results confirm that angioplasty is an effective method of treating patients with variant angina and important coronary stenoses. The problem of the high frequency of restenosis, however, remains unresolved.