Coronary CT angiography-guided management of patients with stable chest pain: 10-year outcomes from the SCOT-HEART randomised controlled trial in Scotland

Abstract

Background

The Scottish Computed Tomography of the Heart (SCOT-HEART) trial demonstrated that management guided by coronary CT angiography (CCTA) improved the diagnosis, management, and outcome of patients with stable chest pain. We aimed to assess whether CCTA-guided care results in sustained long-term improvements in management and outcomes.

Methods

SCOT-HEART was an open-label, multicentre, parallel group trial for which patients were recruited from 12 outpatient cardiology chest pain clinics across Scotland. Eligible patients were aged 18–75 years with symptoms of suspected stable angina due to coronary heart disease. Patients were randomly assigned (1:1) to standard of care plus CCTA or standard of care alone. In this prespecified 10-year analysis, prescribing data, coronary procedural interventions, and clinical outcomes were obtained through record linkage from national registries. The primary outcome was coronary heart disease death or non-fatal myocardial infarction on an intention-to-treat basis. This trial is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT01149590) and is complete.

Findings

Between Nov 18, 2010, and Sept 24, 2014, 4146 patients were recruited (mean age 57 years [SD 10], 2325 [56·1%] male, 1821 [43·9%] female), with 2073 randomly assigned to standard care and CCTA and 2073 to standard care alone. After a median of 10·0 years (IQR 9·3–11·0), coronary heart disease death or non-fatal myocardial infarction was less frequent in the CCTA group compared with the standard care group (137 [6·6%] vs 171 [8·2%]; hazard ratio [HR] 0·79 [95% CI 0·63–0·99], p=0·044). Rates of all-cause, cardiovascular, and coronary heart disease death, and non-fatal stroke, were similar between the groups (p>0·05 for all), but non-fatal myocardial infarctions (90 [4·3%] vs 124 [6·0%]; HR 0·72 [0·55–0·94], p=0·017) and major adverse cardiovascular events (172 [8·3%] vs 214 [10·3%]; HR 0·80 [0·65–0·97], p=0·026) were less frequent in the CCTA group. Rates of coronary revascularisation procedures were similar (315 [15·2%] vs 318 [15·3%]; HR 1·00 [0·86–1·17], p=0·99) but preventive therapy prescribing remained more frequent in the CCTA group (831 [55·9%] of 1486 vs 728 [49·0%] of 1485 patients with available data; odds ratio 1·17 [95% CI 1·01–1·36], p=0·034).

Interpretation

After 10 years, CCTA-guided management of patients with stable chest pain was associated with a sustained reduction in coronary heart disease death or non-fatal myocardial infarction. Identification of coronary atherosclerosis by CCTA improves long-term cardiovascular disease prevention in patients with stable chest pain.

Funding

The Chief Scientist Office of the Scottish Government Health and Social Care Directorates, Edinburgh and Lothian's Health Foundation Trust, British Heart Foundation, and Heart Diseases Research Fund.