Correlations of exercise test and quality of life variables with clinical improvement in effort angina

The value of the exercise test has been challenged in connection with assessments of the effects of drugs on angina. Therefore, a series of test variables were correlated with clinical improvement in 30 patients with effort-related angina and coronary stenoses proved by angiography. The patients had two bicycle tests with an interval of 1 year. They were also clinically graded by a combined score of drug consumption and self-assessment of physical fitness on those two occasions, and classified as deteriorated or unchanged, improved, or without symptoms. Sixteen patients had an aortocoronary bypass during the time between the tests. The highest coefficient of correlation was between differences in heart rate at 1 mm ST depression and changes in clinical grading (r = 0.78, p = 0.001). Fairly good correlations were found when changes in total exercise time and changes in maximum double product were related to changes in clinical grading. Differences in maximum ST depression and in blood pressures at 1 mm ST depression did not correlate with clinical improvement; neither did changes in estimates of quality of life.