Increased heart rate in coronary artery disease

In patients with coronary artery disease, increased heart rate is linked to poor prognosis. However, there is little known about how effective β-blocker therapy is in this population. This study discussed β-blocker doses for cardiovascular events. It is generally known that high doses of β-blockers are linked with low cardiovascular event rates, and it was found that a low dose of β-blockers can also be effective, if the heart rate of the patient is reduced. This association between lowering the heart rate and β-blockers was found as coronary artery patients with heart rates of 77 beats per minute were more likely to die (of any cause) or experience cardiovascular events that those with heart rates below 62 beats per minute. Overall, it was found that a heart rate above 75 beats per minute was associated with worse outcomes for chronic coronary syndrome patients. However, this study was conducted in Japan, so further research is needed to apply these finding globally.

This review by Oba Y et al. aimed to understand the link between increased heart rate and chronic coronary syndrome outcomes, as well as the effect of β-blockers in aiding this issue.

Key learnings:

Although this study found a link between increased heart rate and worsened outcomes in chronic coronary syndrome, a link was not found between β-blockers and event-suppressing in chronic coronary syndrome. Further research is required, as β-blockers effectively improve angina symptoms, so their full potential should be explored further in aiding chronic coronary syndrome patients.