Coronary angiography in smokers undergoing evaluation for lung transplantation: is routine use justified?

Many patients referred for lung transplantation have a history of smoking. For the exclusion of the possibility of asymptomatic coronary artery disease, these patients undergo coronary angiography as part of their preoperative evaluation. The usefulness of this approach remains unknown. We reviewed the records of all smokers referred for lung transplantation who underwent coronary angiography (n = 77). Nine patients (12%) had significant coronary artery disease; six (8%) of these patients had their clinical management altered because of findings on angiography. Eight of nine patients with coronary artery disease (89%) and all of the six patients (100%) whose management was altered had coronary artery disease risk factors other than a history of smoking; therefore, no patient with clinically significant coronary artery disease had history of smoking as the only risk factor. The presence of other coronary artery disease risk factors was significantly associated (p < 0.0001) with the positive findings on angiography. A nonsignificant trend toward older age was found, and a higher proportion of male patients existed in the group with coronary artery disease. Routine angiography for all patients with a history of smoking referred for angiography is unjustified. A subset of patients with high risk identified primarily by the presence of additional coronary artery disease risk factors may benefit from routine angiography.