[Prognosis of non-revascularized triple coronary vessel disease. Apropos of 87 cases].

Between 1982 and 1988, 87 patients (74 men, 13 women), with an average age of 59.6 +/- 10.1 years, had triple coronary artery disease and did not undergo any medical or surgical revascularisation, mainly because of the severity of the coronary disease or left ventricular dysfunction. Sixty-four patients had previous myocardial infarction, 33 unstable angina and 37 left ventricular failure. At coronary angiography, 31 patients had Class III or IV (NYHA) angina. The cardiothoracic ratio was 0.50 +/- 0.06; the left ventricular ejection fraction was 0.47 +/- 0.20. During follow-up of 3.9 +/- 2.6 years (2 patients lost to follow-up), 35 patients died (26 of cardiac and 9 of non-cardiac causes), giving a 5 year actuarial survival of 63%. In univariate analysis, the factors predictive of increased cardiac mortality were: absence of alcohol consumption (p = 0.013); class 3 or 4 angina (p = 0.017); resting angina (p = 0.030); cardiac failure (p = 0.0006); chest X ray showing interstitial or alveolar oedema (p = 0.002); increased cardiothoracic ratio (p = 0.003). A decreased left ventricular ejection fraction was only at the limit of statistical significance (p = 0.054). In multivariate analysis (Cox model), only 4 variables were correlated with increased cardiovascular mortality: resting angina (relative risk, RR = 2.56), cardiac failure (RR = 2.55), increased cardiothoracic ratio (RR = 2.14), absence of alcohol consumption (RR = 4.43). These results confirm the poor prognosis of patients with triple vessel disease not revascularised. They show the value of clinical appreciation to determine the prognosis of these patients.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)