Evaluation of clinical bradycardiac effect and respiratory adverse effect of β-blocking agents in coronary computed tomography angiography based on theoretical analysis.

β-blocking agents are used for patients with tachycardia to improve the image quality of coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA). In this study, we analyzed the clinical bradycardiac effects and the adverse respiratory effects of five β-blocking agents (landiolol, esmolol, propranolol, metoprolol and atenolol) used for CCTA. The changes of the occupancy binding to β1 or β2 receptor of these drugs were calculated based on the receptor occupancy theory. Thereafter, we predicted both the rate of heart rate decline (▲HR) as a clinical effect and the rate of decrease in forced expiratory volume in 1 s (▲FEV1) as an adverse effect, by using the ternary complex model. The results showed that the drugs with ▲HR greater than 10 %, necessary for CCTA, were as follows: landiolol at 13.5 %, propranolol at 11.0 %, and atenolol at 22.6 %. The ▲HR values at the end of CCTA for those three drugs were 0.3, 6.7, and 22.9 %, respectively. It is desirable for the bradycardiac effect to disappear at the end of CCTA. Therefore, landiolol is thought to be a preferable drug. On the other hand, ▲FEV1 at start and end of CCTA for those three drugs was 0.04-2.5, 34.9-40.3, and 6.0-6.1 %, respectively. Our results suggested that landiolol has the most appropriate effect and safety for patients with tachycardia who are undergoing a CCTA procedure.