Coronary artery spasm during exercise: treatment with verapamil.
Six patients who had documented coronary spasm and no coronary artery with organic obstruction greater than 50% developed angina and ST-segment elevation on exercise testing. Oral verapamil, 160-480 mg/day, prevented exercise-induced ischemia in all patients and increased maximal work capacity from 611+/- 250 kpm to 808 +/- 160 kpm (p less than 0.02). In two patients, a relationship between the prevention of exercise-provoked ischemia and the plasma concentration of verapamil was demonstrated, and in one of these, the relationship had a diurnal pattern. Patients with variant angina may develop coronary spasm on effort and often respond to verapamil.
D000787:Angina Pectoris / Q000209:etiology*; D000788:Angina Pectoris, Variant / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000209:etiology*; D005080:Exercise Test; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D005082:Physical Exertion; D014700:Verapamil / Q000097:blood / Q000627:therapeutic use*
D014700:Verapamil