Assessment of quality of life in patients with chest pain and normal coronary arteriogram (syndrome X) using a specific questionnaire.
BACKGROUND
Prognosis in patients with syndrome X (chest pain and normal coronary arteriograms) is good; however, persistent chest pain and functional disability are common in these patients. Accurate assessment of quality of life may be useful for patient management.


OBJECTIVE
The quality of life status in patients with syndrome X was assessed using a specific questionnaire. This questionnaire was developed and validated for the assessment of quality of life in patients with typical chest pain despite normal coronary arteriograms.


METHODS
Ninety consecutive patients were invited to complete both the questionnaire (on two occasions within 2 weeks) and a standardized angina dairy. Fully completed questionnaires were received from 66 (73%) patients (mean age 58 +/- 8 years, 55 women).


RESULTS
Answers were scored according to a grading system where higher scores indicate worse quality of life. We observed that total scores increased with severity of angina (Canadian Class I, 38 +/- 16, II: 93 +/- 29, III-IV, 119 +/- 23; p < 0.001) and correlated with both the number and the severity of chest pain episodes (r = 0.50-0.66: p < 0.001). In patients who remained clinically stable (n = 37) during the 2-week assessment, test-retest analysis showed no score differences (87 +/- 30 vs. 81 +/- 30; p = 0.1), while total score increased in patients (n = 24) whose symptoms worsened (108 +/- 31 vs. 116 +/- 31; p < 0.02) and was reduced in those (n = 5) whose symptoms improved (55 +/- 37 vs. 39 +/- 28; p < 0.04).


CONCLUSIONS
Our study shows that quality of life is significantly impaired in patients with syndrome X and that the specific questionnaire used for assessment is a reliable and sensitive tool for the evaluation of quality of life in patients with chest pain and normal coronary arteriograms.
Atienza
F
F
Cardiology Department, Hospital General Universitario, Valencia, Spain.
Velasco
J A
JA
Brown
S
S
Ridocci
F
F
Kaski
J C
JC
D000368:Aged; D002637:Chest Pain / Q000145:classification* / Q000175:diagnosis; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D017566:Microvascular Angina / Q000145:classification* / Q000175:diagnosis; D008875:Middle Aged; D011788:Quality of Life; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012494:Sampling Studies; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires