Mild Renal Insufficiency Is Associated With Angiographic Coronary Artery Disease in Women

Abstract

Background— Mild renal insufficiency is associated with an increased risk for cardiovascular events in women with coronary artery disease (CAD). However, the relationship between mild renal insufficiency and atherosclerotic CAD in women is not known. Methods and Results— Women with chest pain who were referred for coronary angiography in the NHLBI Women’s Ischemia Syndrome Evaluation (WISE) study underwent quantitative coronary angiography, blood measurements of creatinine, lipids, and homocysteine, and assessment of CAD risk factors. Fifty-six women had mild renal insufficiency (serum creatinine 1.2 to 1.9 mg/dL), and 728 had normal renal function (creatinine <1.2 mg/dL). Creatinine correlated with angiographic CAD severity score (r=0.11, P<0.004) and maximum coronary artery stenosis (r=0.11, P<0.003). Compared with women with normal renal function, those with mild renal insufficiency were more likely to have significant angiographic CAD (≥50% diameter stenosis in ≥1 coronary artery) (61% versus 37%; P<0.001) and CAD in multiple vessels (P<0.001 for association) and had greater maximum percent diameter coronary stenosis (59±35% versus 38±36%; P<0.001). Mild renal insufficiency was associated with significant angiographic CAD independent of age and risk factors (OR=1.9, 95%CI=1.1 to 3.5). After controlling for homocysteine in 509 women, mild renal insufficiency remained predictive of CAD (OR=3.2, 95%CI=1.4 to 7.2). Conclusions— In women with chest pain, mild renal insufficiency is an independent predictor of significant angiographic CAD. Mildly increased serum creatinine is probably a marker for unmeasured proatherogenic factors.