Study Comparing Inflammation-associated Rapidly-progressive Coronary Artery Disease IR-CAD with Typical Atherosclerotic Coronary Artery Disease AS-CAD

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are investigating a special form of coronary artery disease called inflammation-associated rapidly-progressive coronary artery disease IR-CAD, which shows very different features from typical atherosclerotic coronary artery disease AS-CAD. This study compares 20 patients with IR-CAD to 10 patients with AS-CAD to better understand the differences in demographics, clinical signs, lab results, imaging findings, and previous treatments. The goal is to clarify the disease characteristics of IR-CAD, which progresses quickly, recurs often, and does not respond well to usual treatments after coronary interventions. The study groups include IR-CAD patients receiving comprehensive treatment involving intensified secondary prevention, immunosuppressive therapy, coronary revascularization, and supportive care. The control group consists of AS-CAD patients aged 45 to under 65 years who are on standard secondary prevention after coronary intervention without rapidly progressive ischemia or new coronary lesions. Both groups undergo detailed examinations including blood and urine tests, heart imaging, vascular ultrasound, PETCT scans, coronary angiography, and other biomarker assessments as defined by the study protocol. Participants provide information on various health measures such as inflammation markers, cardiac biomarkers, imaging results, and physical function tests like the 6-minute walk and 1-minute squat tests. The main measure is the rate of elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate ESR, a marker of inflammation. Researchers will compare this and other health data between groups. The study involves careful collection and analysis of clinical, lab, and imaging data up to the point of enrollment before new treatments begin. The total study duration extends to September 2026.

Disease Characteristics of IR-CAD: a Case-control Study