Background: Coronary artery disease (CAD) and gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD) often coexist in the same patients. The aim of this study was to estimate the effects of gastric acid output suppression with rabeprazole on course of angina pectoris and results of the treadmill stress test in patients with CAD.
Material/methods: We studied 34 patients with stable angina pectoris. In all subjects a medical history, a physical examination, and a stress test were performed at the beginning of the study and after two weeks of add-on rabeprazole therapy (20 mg b.i.d.).
Results: Rabeprazole therapy significantly improved the outcome of the stress test in 27 patients (79%), prolonging mean stress exercise time (449+/-147 vs. 489+/-156s, p=0.027) and exercise time, leading to a maximum ST interval depression (360+/-167 vs. 467+/-148s, p=0.001), and also decreasing ST interval depression delta (1.9+/-1.1 vs. 1.5+/-0.9; p=0.013).
Conclusions: In 79% of our study subjects, rabeprazole improved stress test results in CAD patients, which implies that at least some of their symptoms were related to GERD. A proton pump inhibitor exerted a favorable effect on the frequency of angina-like chest pain and the results of the treadmill stress test.