[Effect of a meal on electrocardiographic features in patients with coronary artery disease]

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Gastroenterology
• Exercise Physiology

Background:

• Coronary artery disease (CAD) affects cardiac function during physical stress.
• Gastric motility and emptying play roles in postprandial physiological responses.
• The interaction between digestion and cardiac stress in CAD patients is not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between gastric motility and the extent of coronary insufficiency in males.
• To compare these effects in individuals with and without stable coronary artery disease (CAD).
• To assess the impact of meal ingestion on exercise performance and cardiac stress markers.

Main Methods:

• Study included 30 males with CAD and 10 healthy controls.
• Exercise treadmill tests (ETT) were performed in interdigestive and postprandial states (30 and 120 min after a 775 kcal meal).
• Gastric emptying was assessed via ultrasonography (antral area); ETT outcomes included time to ST depression, exercise duration, and ST depression magnitude.

Main Results:

• In healthy individuals, meals did not affect ETT results.
• In the CAD group, postprandial ETT showed a significantly shorter time to ST depression (p < 0.001) and reduced exercise duration (p < 0.001).
• Postprandial gastric filling (enlarged antral area) correlated with increased ST depression depth (p < 0.001) and worsened coronary insufficiency symptoms during stress.

Conclusions:

• Standard meal intake exacerbates exercise-induced coronary insufficiency in men with CAD.
• A direct relationship exists between gastric filling and the severity of exercise-induced coronary insufficiency.
• Digestion significantly impacts cardiac function and stress tolerance in CAD patients, unlike in healthy individuals.