Clinical course of patients with normal or slightly or moderately abnormal coronary arteriograms: 10-year follow-up of 521 patients.

The clinical course was followed for 10 years in 521 patients whose coronary arteriograms did not show any severe obstruction. Coronary disease had been suspected in all patients before arteriography. Two of 357 patients thought to have normal arteriograms died from coronary disease and two of 101 patients died who had less than 30% estimated narrowing of at least one coronary artery. Ten deaths ascribed to coronary disease occurred in 63 patinets who had 30-50% narrowing of at least one major coronary artery. The difference in death rates between the normal or mildly diseased groups and the group that had moderate narrowing was significant (p < 0.01). Coronary events (death from coronary disease, subsequent myocardial infarction, or arteriographic evidence of progression of coronary obstruction) occurred in 2.1% of those who had normal arteriograms, 13.8% of the group with mild lesions, and 33% of those with moderate degree of coronary arterial narrowing.