Ejection fraction response to exercise in patients with chest pain and normal coronary arteriograms

R. J. Gibbons, K. L. Lee, F. Cobb, R. H. Jones

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

89 Scopus citations

Abstract

In this study we describe the ejection fraction response to upright exercise using first-pass radionuclide angiocardiography in a group of 60 patients with chest pain, normal coronary arteriograms and normal resting ventricular function. A wide range of resting functiong (heart rate and ejection fraction) and exercise function (heart rate, ejection fraction, peak work load and estimated peak oxygen uptake) were measured. The ejection fraction response to exercise demonstrated wide variation, ranging from a decrease of 23% to an increase of 24%. Six of 22 clinical and radionuclide angiocardiographic variables (resting ejection fraction, peak work load, age, sex, body surface area and the change in end-diastolic volume index with exercise were significant univariate predictors of the ejection fraction response to exercise. Multivariable analysis identified resting ejection fraction, the change in end-diastolic volume index with exercise and either sex or peak work load as variables that provided significant independent predictive information. These observations indicate that the ejection fraction response to exercise is a complex response that is influenced by multiple physiologic variables. The wide variation in this population suggests that the ejection fraction response to exercise is not a reliable test for the diagnosis of coronary artery disease because of its low specificity.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)952-957
Number of pages6
JournalCirculation
Volume64
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - 1981

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine
  • Physiology (medical)

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