[Behavior of pulmonary artery pressure in the egometric exercise test in chronic coronary disease]

Bicycle exercise stress tests of 39 patients with coronary heart disease are compared to those of 33 healthy persons. The difference in enddiastolic pulmonary artery pressure (PAEDP) of the patients compared to the healthy is low at rest (PAEDPhec healthy = 8.49 +/- 2.80, PAEDPCHD = 10.51 +/- 5.09, p = 0.05). Stress testing (50 Watts) brings significant differences of the average enddiastolic pressures (PAEDP healthy = 12.76 +/- 3.61, PAEDPCHD = 19.38 +/- 7.96, p = 0.001). More important than this (already well known difference) is the wide divergence of results within the group of patients with CHD. For this reason this type of investigation seems to be a good "screening method" regarding selection for coronary arteriography. The reason for the pathological rise of PAEDP can be found in a decrease of compliance due to ischaemia ("coronary factor"), or in exercise induced temporary heart failure ("myocardial factor"), or both.